Fatal Shooting by Officer Reenacted

VENTURA — With special attention to positioning and possible bullet trajectories, investigators Tuesday reenacted a fatal police shooting that occurred during the weekend.

A team of investigators from the Ventura Police Department restaged Saturday’s shooting of William Anthony Ramos, 29, who was hit three times in the stomach during a scuffle with officers, said Lt. Carl Handy, a department spokesman.

The reenactment took place at the site of the shooting and at approximately the same time of day.

Since the shooting, police have heard from more than a dozen possible witnesses, but they are still looking for more witnesses, Handy said.

“We’re interested in finding out as much as we can about what happened,” he said.

Authorities initially said that Ramos was stopped about 9:25 a.m. Saturday by Officer Chuck Watson for darting in and out of traffic on Telephone Road in front of the 101 Drive-In.

For unexplained reasons, Ramos lunged at Watson and tried to grab his gun, police said. During the struggle, Officer Chris Davis arrived and shot Ramos three times. Davis, a Medal of Valor winner, three years ago stabbed a mentally ill suspect who allegedly attacked him. The suspect survived and was later convicted in the assault.

But on Tuesday, Handy said the early description of the incident was a simplistic rendition of the encounter and that police now have a more complete understanding of what happened.

Handy said both officers were talking to Ramos before the shooting.

One witness, geologist Steve Catlin, questioned the initial description of the event, saying that he and his wife drove by the drive-in about 9:30 a.m. and saw the two officers quietly talking to Ramos.

“I remember because as we passed by I was looking back straight into his face and I told my wife that the guy looked like he was on something,” said Catlin, 39.

Ramos--tall and lanky--looked slightly disheveled and his hair was standing on end, he said.

“We went by my work and then came by no more than five minutes later and the shooting had already occurred,” Catlin said.

Another witness who lives across the street, said she was taken aback by how police treated Ramos after he was shot.

“I saw the body just curled up in the fetal position between the sidewalk and the bushes . . . with handcuffs on one hand,” said Jeannie Hernandez. “It just seemed like forever before they took him to the hospital.”

Police said their logs show that paramedics arrived to treat Ramos within two to three minutes of the shooting, Handy said. Ramos was declared dead about an hour later.

On Monday, two of Ramos’ siblings talked to police about the shooting but left unsatisfied, Handy said.

Ramos’ sister, Cindee Ramos, said family attorney Ernest Bell asked them not to talk about the case, pending the outcome of the police investigation.

“We want to know what happened,” said Bell, a Ventura lawyer. “But I do wonder about why the police shot an unarmed man. . . . He was 6 feet tall and only about 150 pounds. He’s not a tough guy and you just have to wonder why they had to shoot him [several] times in the stomach.”

Handy asked that any other witnesses call the police at 339-4493.