After about two days of testimony and two and a half hours of deliberation, a Downtown Los Angeles jury found a man guilty of the 2023 murder of Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, who was fatally shot on patrol at an intersection near the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station.
The evidence made it clear Kevin Eduardo Cataneo Salazar, who pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, was responsible.
The case statement from the prosecution indicated Salazar previously confessed to committing the murder to Homicide Bureau detectives.
But now the sanity phase of the trial is set to begin, and that could take several weeks, based on previous estimates.
During testimony last week, in an effort to tie him to the scene and demonstrate his state of mind, prosecutors introduced testimony that described Salazar in erratic and aggressive confrontations with random motorists in the moments surrounding the murder.
District Attorney Nathan Hochman issued a statement saying he hoped the verdict brought some form of relief to the family of Clinkunbroomer, a fourth-generation deputy who grew up in the area and had the Castaic Sports Complex named after him posthumously.
“This brutal and senseless murder took the life of a dedicated deputy, leaving his family, colleagues and community to endure an unimaginable loss. We hope today’s guilty verdict brings a measure of healing to Deputy Clinkunbroomer’s family and loved ones,” Hochman’s statement said. “While the trial now moves to the sanity phase, this verdict is an important step toward justice and accountability. I am deeply grateful to our Crimes Against Peace Officers prosecutors for their tireless work on this case and their continued commitment to Deputy Clinkunbroomer, his family and all those who loved him.”
There’s still work for prosecutors in the case, because Salazar pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
The sanity phase of the trial starts Wednesday, in Department 101 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center, and that phase will determine whether Salazar will be housed in a state penitentiary or a mental health facility.
The people and the defense rested Friday, with jurors beginning deliberation Monday morning before finding Salazar guilty of first-degree murder, and finding true the special-circumstance allegations of murder of a peace officer, lying in wait and firing from a vehicle. The jury also found true the special allegation that Salazar personally used a .22-caliber revolver to commit the crime.
On Sept. 16, 2023, Salazar followed Clinkunbroomer, who was on duty, in his vehicle as the deputy left the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Palmdale Station, according to a statement from the District Attorney’s Office.
Less than a block away from the station, Salazar ambushed and fatally shot Clinkunbroomer then sped away. Clinkunbroomer was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he died.
Deputies arrested Salazar two days later following an intensive manhunt.
L.A. County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who initiated the effort to rename the sports complex, also issued a statement Monday, after the verdict was announced.
“Today, a jury delivered justice for Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer. No verdict can undo that loss, but this conviction affirms that those who target our law enforcement officers will be held fully accountable,” the statement read. “My thoughts are with Deputy Clinkunbroomer’s family and the entire Sheriff’s Department, who have carried this grief since September 2023. I hope this verdict brings them, and our whole community, a measure of closure.”
