Guns to protect used in crimes
Recent shootings involving firearms stolen from law enforcement officials raise issues of security, record-keeping
“There should be an awareness more than ever of how important it is to secure our firearms.”
— Phan Ngo, San Jose Police Department deputy chief
OAKLAND — The revelation this week that a federal immigration agent’s gun was used to kill Oakland muralist Antonio Ramos in September adds to a running tally of high-profile Bay Area cases from the past year in which a law enforcement firearm was stolen from a vehicle.
One of those guns is linked to the shooting death in July of 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle, formerly of Pleasanton, as she walked along Pier 14 in San Francisco, involving a pistol
stolen from the vehicle of a ranger with the Bureau of Land Management.
The succession of thefts since the summer is a small sample given the thousands of police weapons issued in the region. But the incidents highlight a lack of centralized record-keeping and have touched off a conversation in law enforcement agencies trying to avoid being the latest to experience a scenario that can range from embarrassing — a chief was victimized, and another officer was reportedly looted by a prostitute — to tragic.
At the heart of the discussion are these questions: Is this a significant problem, or are we just paying more attention?
“I’ve been in law enforcement for 26 years, and it’s only within the last three or four years I’ve seen and heard more about these” thefts, said deputy chief Phan Ngo of the San Jose Police Department, which recently dealt with an academy recruit’s gun being stolen from his car.
Ngo noted that increased awareness about such thefts could be a result of improvements in tracing weapons, and a general uptick in auto burglaries in the Bay Area that swallows up officers’ vehicles as well.
“It’s a combination of things,” he said. “We’re able to track guns better, and there is more awareness and media coverage.”
But Ngo said he and his law enforcement colleagues should not lose sight of crucial lessons from the thefts.
“There should be an awareness more than ever of how important it is to secure our firearms,” he said. “There can be deadly consequences when that doesn’t happen.”
It’s difficult to get a complete picture of how often police guns are stolen because such thefts are not recorded in any centralized manner in California.
In the most recent instance, Marquise Holloway, a 20-year-old Oakland man, stands accused of fatally shooting Ramos during a Sept. 29 attempted robbery where he reportedly used an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer’s gun. The agency said the Glock semi-automatic pistol was stolen Sept. 13 in San Francisco and that the theft was properly reported. ICE would not comment on reports that the gun was taken from a rental car associated with the agent.
Other cases include the Aug. 26 theft of a Hayward police officer’s pistol, which was taken from a vehicle in the Fruitvale district in Oakland in a parking lot known for problems with car burglaries.
Six days earlier, a police-issued Sig Sauer P239 handgun, ammunition and police badge were among several items stolen from an unmarked SUV belonging to UC Berkeley police Chief Margo Bennett, who parked the vehicle at Richmond’s Point Isabel Regional Shoreline while she jogged before work.
Four days before Steinle died, a BLM ranger’s Sig Sauer pistol that was used in Steinle’s killing was stolen from a vehicle in downtown San Francisco. Steinle’s family has filed a claim against the bureau contending that the gun was inside a backpack that was left in plain sight in the ranger’s vehicle.
This newspaper in February reported that a gun and badge belonging to Kensington Sgt. Keith Barrow were stolen from a Reno hotel room by a prostitute he purportedly paid for sex. An ensuing scandal over the Police Department’s handling of the case led to the chief’s ouster and eventually a claim by an elected official that she was pulled over and harassed by the same sergeant, allegedly in retaliation.
At the San Jose Police Department, an academy recruit left the force without graduating after his department-issued Glock 17 9 mm pistol, three high-capacity magazines, handcuffs and other items were stolen from the trunk of his car, which was parked in front of a Benihana restaurant in Cupertino on Oct. 26. Everything but the gun has been recovered.
The car-theft cases also highlight how departments don’t have universal rules for handling weapons but instead enforce broad policies that admonish against any activity that “violates public safety,” as it is decreed in San Jose.
“I don’t know all the circumstances, but it’s a combination of bad luck and some bad judgment used by these individuals,” Ngo said. “The takeaway from this is don’t leave your handgun in your car unattended whenever possible.”
He added that officers have several, if not all convenient, alternatives to leaving a firearm in a vehicle, including leaving it at work or first going home to secure it in a safe. If it’s important to keep that weapon nearby, the officer should carry it, he said.
“If you feel compelled, then take it with you or on your person, which you can do as a peace officer,” Ngo said.
Officers also can use invehicle lockboxes to minimize theft risk. Retired FBI agent James Wedick told this newspaper after the Kensington case that such a lockbox should be built into the vehicle’s frame.
“To steal it, you’ve got to steal the car,” he said.
Ngo added that the theft cases should be cautionary tales to reinforce safe gun storage by anyone who owns a gun.
“First and foremost, everyone should be vigilant in the securing of their firearm, not just law enforcement,” he said. “Hopefully people will see these stories and be more careful about how they handle their firearms.”