Rookie S.D. officer who shot alleged gunman identified

SAN DIEGO

San Diego police on Tuesday identified the rookie officer who shot and wounded a motorcyclist who allegedly opened fire on him last week during a City Heights traffic stop.

Officer Justin Hibbard, who joined the department in January and was still undergoing field training, shot 35-year-old Jesus Medina Morales on Sept. 28, according to the Police Department.

Investigators said Hibbard and his training officer were running after Morales when the fleeing man fired a gun at Hibbard, the closest officer to him, according to San Diego police Lt. Jud Campbell. Hibbard was not hit by Morales’ shot and fired back, striking Morales twice.

Paramedics took Morales to a hospital for treatment of the wounds, and jail records showed he was transferred on Friday to the San Diego Central Jail, where he was booked on suspicion of several felonies, including attempted murder, assault on a police officer and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He remained jailed Tuesday in lieu of $3 million bail.

The shootout occurred around 5:40 p.m. on Sept. 28 at Rex Avenue and Shiloh Road, after patrol officers tried to pull over a motorcyclist for having an obstructed license plate on nearby Lea Street, near Colina Del Sol Park, Campbell said in a news release.

The rider didn’t pull over and instead continued on for several blocks before the motorcycle tipped on its side and crashed on Wightman Avenue near Ogden Street, the lieutenant said. The rider then ran off, with the officers in pursuit, before allegedly opening fire on Hibbard.