CHP faces wrongful death lawsuit in Roseville park shootout last year that killed hostage

The California Highway Patrol faces a wrongful death lawsuit that alleges “reckless planning” by investigators serving a search warrant last year at a busy Roseville park, where an armed suspect killed a hostage and wounded two other people during an afternoon shootout.

Eric James Abril, 36, last month was ordered to stand trial on murder and attempted murder charges in last year’s shooting at Mahany Park in Roseville.

Abril is accused of shooting James MacEgan of Roseville and his wife during the April 6, 2023, standoff with authorities. MacEgan, 72, died from his injuries. Patricia MacEgan and CHP officer Matthew Hiatt were wounded by gunfire.

The civil lawsuit was filed in Sacramento Superior Court against the CHP on behalf of Patricia MacEgan and her late husband. The law firm of Dreyer Babich Buccola Wood Campora, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the MacEgans, alleges the CHP operation to serve the search warrant was planned in Sacramento County.

The lawsuit alleges the decision by CHP investigators to approach Abril at the park where children and families were in the middle of the day “caused a reckless exchange of gunfire” between Abril and law enforcement officials trying to serve the warrant.

The plaintiffs argue that the CHP investigators failed to notify local law enforcement about their intention to approach Abril, “a known dangerous felon,” while serving the search warrant. The CHP failed to plan properly as evidenced — the lawsuit states — by an inadequate command and control of the encounter, insufficient air support, a lack of a perimeter, an insufficient uniformed presence, inadequate contingencies and insufficient strategic weapons and tactics present.

Testimony in Abril’s ongoing criminal case revealed that CHP investigators planned to serve the warrant on Abril in connection with a shooting two months earlier on a Sacramento County freeway, where gunfire struck a vehicle.

The civil lawsuit alleges that investigators believed Abril was traveling south on Highway 99 where he pulled out a gun and fired at another vehicle on the busy freeway.

The plaintiffs also allege that further investigation into the freeway shooting revealed to the CHP that Abril had a previous firearm conviction, was prohibited from possessing a gun, “was unstable” and was armed, dangerous and would certainly put the public at risk of death or injury if contacted by law enforcement,” according to the lawsuit.

Request to dismiss civil lawsuit

On Thursday morning, Judge Christopher Krueger heard arguments from attorneys in the civil case. The state Attorney General’s Office, which is representing the CHP, filed a motion to dismiss the wrongful death lawsuit, arguing there was no legal basis for the MacEgans’ claims.

Deputy Attorney General Molly Murphy told the judge that the CHP has immunity for injuries caused by someone resisting law enforcement officials. She argued that these are “absolute immunities,” which means “the case goes away.”

“This is obviously a person who’s fleeing an attempt to restrain his liberty,” Murphy told the judge.

Kelsey Fischer, the attorney representing the MacEgans in court Thursday, told the judge it was too early to decide whether to dismiss the case based on the claim of immunity since the plaintiffs “have been completely stalled” when seeking documents and other information about the Roseville park shootout.

Fischer argued it’s not clear what Abril believed was happening at Mahany Park the afternoon investigators approached him. She said her clients were entitled to know what the officers were wearing that day and what they said to Abril in the moments they approached him.

“It’s not clear Mr. Abril was resisting arrest or knew what was happening,” Fischer said in court. “There is no immunity from unreasonable tactics and excessive force.”

The MacEgans’ attorney said the CHP had provided documents with heavy redaction. She said the CHP claimed releasing officials documents went against agency policies.

Murphy told the judge the Attorney General’s Office had provided the names of the officers involved in the Abril operation, along with all information the CHP released to media outlets.

She said she offered materials in the ongoing Placer County murder case against Abril, information that would be provided under a protective order not to disclose the information publicly. Murphy told the judge that the plaintiffs never responded to her offer.

At the conclusion of Thursday’s hearing, the judge said he would take the arguments under advisement and announce his ruling at a later time.

Freeway shooting investigation

Abril also faces two additional counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, alleging that Abril also fired gunshots at two other officers, Leo Smith and Tyson Becker, during the April 6 standoff.

Leo Smith, a CHP investigator at Mahany Park that day, testified last month in a two-day preliminary hearing in Abril’s criminal case. He said the freeway shooting occurred Feb. 16, 2023, when gunfire struck a vehicle, according to a filed transcript of the preliminary hearing.

Smith said security camera video captured the suspect vehicle, which led to Abril. The investigator testified they obtained a search warrant to install a GPS tracker on Abril’s sport utility vehicle, a brown Toyota Sequoia. He said they used the GPS tracker to monitor Abril’s movements.

About 20 investigators planned to break up into two teams to serve search warrants at Abril’s Burnt Cedar Way home, about a mile northwest of Mahany Park, and on Abril himself and his vehicle. Smith said in court that they were looking for weapons, guns, ammunition and electronic devices.

During cross-examination, Smith said the team of investigators’ intent was to serve search warrants on April 6, 2023; they didn’t have an arrest warrant for Abril.

Police standoff at Mahany Park

Smith and other investigators were at Mahany Park when the GPS tracker showed Abril’s vehicle leaving the Burnt Cedar Way home and heading to the park. Smith testified they spotted Abril get out of his vehicle and take his dogs for a walk in the park. The investigator parked his vehicle next to Abril’s SUV to try to prevent him from driving away and initiating a police pursuit.

The investigator testified that he was wearing a black baseball cap that said “Police” on the front and a black vest that had “Police” in yellow letters on the front, along with a CHP badge. He said fellow investigators at the park wore similar clothing.

As the team of investigators approached, Smith’s task was to make an announcement to Abril as he was returning to his SUV in the parking lot.

“I yelled at him, ‘Police. Hands up. Get down on the floor,’” Smith said in court. “He put his hands, and he said, ‘Wait, wait, wait.’ And he looked to his left, and then he took off running.”

Abril’s dogs didn’t follow the fleeing suspect, Smith said in court. He didn’t know what happened to the dogs. The investigator testified that he chased after Abril, yelling several times. “Stop, police!”

Becker, who has since retired, was then a Sacramento County probation officer who worked with the CHP on a countywide auto theft task force. He was assisting the CHP that day at Mahany Park, as he would do for similar operations.

In the preliminary hearing, Becker said he was wearing undercover clothing — blue jeans and blue hooded sweatshirt — with his gun concealed under his sweatshirt. He said he had a badge, but it was tucked beneath his sweatshirt.

“There was no indication I was a law enforcement officer,” Becker said in court about his clothing.

Becker was part of the team tasked with serving the search warrant at Abril’s home, but they didn’t want all those investigators parked outside the Burnt Cedar Way home before they approached Abril at the park, he said. He was asked, he said, to be around the Mahany Park area, in case they were needed. Becker testified he later took a position in the area of a “wildlife preserve” at the park.

The probation officer said he saw Abril running toward him, and he saw Abril use his left hand to lift his shirt on the right side of his hip. The probation officer said he then saw Abril brandish a semi-automatic handgun with an extended ammunition magazine.

“The first thing that I yelled was ‘Gun, gun, gun,’ three times,” Becker said on the witness stand. “I couldn’t draw fire. I could not shoot at the subject, because directly behind him in the baseball field ... I observed two kids right in the line of sight.”

Hiatt, the CHP officer wounded, was hit by gunfire before the MacEgans were taken hostage, according to prosecutors.

At the time of the initial gun battle, the MacEgans were on an afternoon stroll along a walking trail where Abril had taken cover in a creek, Placer County Deputy District Attorney David Tellman wrote in a court document filed Sept. 15. Tellman said the couple heard the gunshots coming from nearby and took cover in the grass by the creek.

As numerous officers converged, created a perimeter around Abril’s location, Abril made his way up the creek to where the MacEgans had taken cover, Tellman said in filings.

Widow saw husband ‘start to fade’

Alana Gruchow, an investigator with the Placer County District Attorney’s Office, was a Roseville Police Department detective when the shootout occurred last year. The investigator testified in court that she questioned Patricia MacEgan days after the shooting.

MacEgan told Gruchow that she heard gunfire, which sounded like fireworks. Her husband then told her to get on the ground, before they both ducked for cover. The widow said she saw a flash of light, heard the loud sound of gunfire and smelled smoke from gunpowder; all occurring simultaneously.

MacEgan’s husband said “Ow,” and when she asked him if he was okay, he said “No,” according to Gruchow.

“And she saw him start to fade,” Gruchow said about MacEgan witnessing her husband begin to lose consciousness, moments before she felt someone grab her by the ankles.

The prosecutor alleges that Abril confronted the couple, at which point James MacEgan was shot and killed, before Abril grabbed MacEgan’s wife and pulled her into the creek.

Abril became frustrated police weren’t responding to his demands quickly enough, and he shot Patricia MacEgan through the shoulder, which was captured on drone video, the prosecutor said. Abril then used Patricia MacEgan as a “human shield” as he approached the officers and surrendered, according to Tellman.

Abril was wounded in an exchange of gunfire with officers, police said, and was hospitalized for a day before being taken into jail custody.

In Placer County, Abril also faces an additional felony charge of escaping from law enforcement custody. Abril had been in Placer County Sheriff’s Office custody until July 9, when he escaped from Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

Sheriff’s officials have said Abril was being guarded by a deputy but managed “to defeat his restraints” and slip out of the hospital shortly after 3 a.m. while the deputy was on a bathroom break. Abril was captured after a 33-hour manhunt.

He remains in custody at the Placer County jail and is expected to be formally arraigned for the new charges Sept. 10.