An L.A. County Superior Court judge last week granted additional limited access to the personnel file for a Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputy who shot an armed domestic violence suspect accused of assault with a deadly weapon during a standoff in Castaic last year.
The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office filed several felony counts Oct. 21, 2024, against 45-year-old Raul Martinez, who was shot after aiming his handgun at the deputy, according to LASD officials.
His initial charges included assault with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment by violence, child abuse likely to cause great bodily injury, discharging a firearm with gross negligence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
In November, the Public Defender’s Office filed a Pitchess motion to compel a further examination of Deputy Tarek Salah, who responded alone to a 911 call of shots fired on Oct. 11, 2024, near Parker and Sloan Canyon roads.
The caller said he overheard a fight between a wife and her husband, who talked about “using his .38” and reportedly fired shots near his wife and child, according to the filing from LASD attorneys.
Martinez was holding his wife at gunpoint with a child in the back seat when Salah arrived, per court records filed by the LASD.
During a brief standoff, the Castaic High School resource officer reported to investigators that Martinez pointed the gun at him as the deputy exited his vehicle, prompting the deputy to take cover behind the door of his patrol vehicle.
When the suspect pointed the gun at his wife, the deputy opened fire once, striking Martinez, who was hospitalized for several days before being taken into custody, per the court records.
Martinez’s attorney declined to comment on the decision to grant additional access Friday when reached for comment.
While a law enforcement officer’s record is generally kept confidential under state law, an attorney can compel the release in certain situations with a Pitchess motion. This allows a judicial review of the records, most commonly ones related to administrative investigations and complaints within the past five years. The LASD maintains a team of attorneys who represent employees at every Pitchess motion, according to the agency’s website.
Salah’s file contained one complainant: a man who lived in Newhall when he filed the complaint in Salah’s file, according to a sworn declaration by Martinez’s public defender, James Bruns.
The complainant alleged he was a victim of domestic violence from an ex-girlfriend in 2020 when he called Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials, who were rude and threatening.
An investigator with the Public Defender’s Office tracked down the person, who was now living in Los Angeles, and said he could not provide “substantive information” regarding the identification of Salah’s role in the complaint, as so much time had elapsed since the incident.
Bruns said he was requesting a “supplemental in-camera review” to identify any potential written complaints, summaries, investigative notes and other discoverable material.
The next hearing date for Martinez is Jan. 21.
