Jury Convicts Kevin Salazar of First-Degree Murder in Deputy’s Ambush Killing

A jury in Palmdale returned a guilty verdict for Kevin Eduardo Cataneo Salazar on the charge of first-degree murder for the September 2023 ambush of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer. The 30-year-old deputy, a third-generation officer, was shot in the back of the head while waiting at a red light, just days after announcing his engagement. The trial established that Salazar lay in wait and deliberately fired a.22-caliber revolver from a vehicle.

After the conviction, jurors will consider whether Salazar was legally sane, a determination that will send him either to state prison or a state psychiatric hospital. District Attorney Nathan Hochman and Sheriff Robert Luna praised the verdict as a measure of accountability, while Salazar’s lawyer George Rosenstock emphasized the upcoming sanity phase. The case underscores concerns about mental-health treatment gaps and gun regulation in California.