The Californian
KERN COUNTY, Calif. — A Kern County Probation Department review board decided that an officer acted within the department’s policy in her “use of force” in an officer-involved shooting earlier this month.
The Kern County Probation Department Incident Review Board met Tuesday to consider Deputy Probation Officer Stacy Crawford’s use of force in an incident that happened Sept. 16, according to a news release sent Saturday night. Crawford has worked for the department for eight years.
During the incident, an officer shot at probationer Stephen Espinoza when he was found hiding in a closet in a McFarland residence during a compliance check. When he was discovered in a closet, Espinoza refused to show his hands and started to turn toward an officer who believed he was armed with a gun, a previous news release said. The officer fired one round toward him, but Espinoza was not harmed. He and another probationer were arrested.
Officers found a loaded handgun, a loaded shotgun and ballistic body armor when they searched the home. The probation officer was placed on routine administrative leave pending a review of the incident, the news release said.
The shooting review board was comprised of Deputy Chief Brandon Beecher, Deputy Chief Kathy Lemon and Probation Division Director Marc Bridgford.