A weekend camping trip of drinking and shooting firearms led to the arrest of an off-duty LAPD officer for shooting another off-duty cop.
Ismael Tamayo, 44, was arrested early Sunday morning and booked on a single count of attempted murder. The victim whose name has not been released was struck in the shoulder and is expected to survive. He is 48 years old. The other cop that had gone camping with them is a supervisor.
Tamayo was arrested at 1:17 a.m. Sunday and is being held on a one million bail, so Blue Privilege apparently does not protect cops when they shoot other cops.
Last year when an off-duty LAPD cop shot and killed a mentally ill man inside a Costco, he was never taken into custody and was ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing. An attorney for Tamayo is confident the same will happen to his client.
“We are cooperating with authorities and we are confident that he will be cleared of any wrongdoing once the facts are made known,” Greg Yacoubian told CNN.
But the LAPD referred to the shooting as a “disturbing incident” in its press release, which can read in its entirety below.
The Los Angeles Police Department was notified early Sunday morning about a disturbing incident involving three of our employees, that occurred just after 1:00 am in an unincorporated area of Apple Valley.
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to a shooting call at the Stoddard Wells Off-Highway Vehicle Area. They arrived to find one of our three employees, an off-duty police officer, suffering from a gunshot wound. The officer was airlifted to a nearby hospital and is in stable condition and expected to survive. A second employee, an off-duty supervisor, was not injured by the third accused employee, identified as Police Officer III Ismael Tamayo, assigned to the Department’s Newton Division.
Uniform personnel from the SBCSD located Ismael Tamayo nearby and he was taken into custody. At the time of his arrest he was in possession a firearm.
Ismael Tamayo was booked for Attempted Murder 664/187(a) PC.
Investigators from the LAPD’s Force Investigation Division of Professional Standards Bureau, responded to the scene and initiated an administrative investigation. The Department is fully cooperating with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office in their criminal investigation.
In response to the arrest, Police Chief Michel Moore expressed disappointment and frustration, “The events overnight culminating in the serious injury to our off-duty officer, apparently at the hands of another member of this Department, give me great concern. I spoke earlier this morning with San Bernardino Sheriff John McMahon, pledging our full support of their criminal investigation. I am thankful our injured officer is in stable condition and expected to survive. I am committed to determining what and how this occurred.”
Officer Tamayo has been relieved of his police powers pending the outcome of the criminal and administrative investigation.
Tamayo served in the army for 21 years, his attorney said. The shooting took place about 120 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles.