HB Police: One dead in officer-involved shooting

A man shot and killed by Huntington Beach police on Saturday is suspected to have fired multiple shots from a handgun during a confrontation with an officer, according to the Orange County sheriff’s department.

Eric Marquez, 26, of Orange, was shot and killed by an officer, who has not been identified, at Silver Lane near Glencoe Drive around 7:46 a.m.

According to evidence and witness reports, Marquez is suspected to have fired multiple shots from a handgun that was recovered from the suspect’s body at the scene, Lt. Jeff Hallock said.

Investigators are still looking for a second suspect that was with Marquez during the time of the incident.

The shooting is being investigated as an attempted murder of a police officer, according to the Huntington Beach Police Department.

The officer is uninjured, police officials said.

At 7:46 a.m., an officer patrolling alone near Sun View Elementary School stopped to talk to two people in a car at the corner of Glencoe Drive and Silver Lane, Huntington Beach police Lt. Mitch O’Brien said.

“The two males ended up running from the officer,” O’Brien said.

One suspect escaped while the officer chased the other suspect a short distance down Glencoe Drive until there was a confrontation that resulted in an officer involved shooting, according to O’Brien.

The suspect then ran back the opposite direction on Glencoe Drive toward Silver Lane, the lieutenant said.

At that point, there was a second confrontation that ended with the suspect being shot and killed at Silver Lane just south of Glencoe Drive, O’Brien said.

“At this time there is no known motive for the suspect’s actions, why he did what he did,” O’Brien said.

Police officials said they recovered a handgun from the dead suspect at the scene but would not say if the suspect had shot at police or what exactly happened during the confrontations with the officer.

Neighbors reported hearing a dozen or more gunshots around the time of the incident.

“I just kind of ducked and covered,” said Guy Knack, who lives around the corner from Silver Lane.

The second person who fled the vehicle is wanted for questioning, O’Brien said.

He was last seen running northbound on nearby Sher Lane and described as a six-foot-tall, 200-pound Latino man with a shaved head and wearing all-black clothing, according to police.

Huntington Beach police have not identified the officer involved in the shooting, saying only he is a nine-year law-enforcement veteran.

Ruben Young, who was watching the crime scene from the sidewalk Saturday morning, said the man police shot and killed was his brother.

Young arrived at the scene at about 8 a.m. to see his brother’s body in the street, he said.

The 24-year-old and his aunt Rosanne Maestas questioned the officer’s decision to shoot.

“I think the use of deadly force wasn’t necessary,” Young said.

He did not know why Marquez was in the neighborhood or who he was with, but said it could have been to visit relatives in the area.

Maestas and Young were waiting with family members for official confirmation that Marquez had been killed but said they were confident it was him.

Young said there was no medical attention given to his brother while he watched.

“It was obvious that nobody did anything to him,” he said. “They let him bleed out.”

O’Brien said the Huntington Beach Fire Department had been on scene to give medical aid.

“Medics were called immediately and responded,” he wrote in an email.

The investigation has been handed over to the Orange County sheriff’s department as is standard for officer-involved shootings in Huntington Beach, O’Brien said.