San Diego police have identified the officer who shot a passenger in the shoulder during a stolen-vehicle investigation in San Ysidro, more than a week after the incident left the man hospitalized and no one under arrest. Officer Ricardo Zambrano, an eight-year veteran of the department assigned to patrol in the Southern Division, discharged his weapon at approximately 7:05 a.m. on July 29 in the 3600 block of Beyer Boulevard, near an apartment complex close to Del Sur Boulevard.
According to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office, officers had located a vehicle believed to be stolen near the apartment complex when the encounter unfolded. Per the original news release, the driver did not stop when officers attempted to pull the vehicle over, as reported by NBC 7 San Diego. The vehicle then advanced toward Zambrano, who fired his weapon, striking the passenger in the shoulder. Zambrano was not injured in the exchange.
Neither Occupant Held After the Shooting
In the immediate aftermath, the driver was detained but has since been released without arrest. The passenger who was shot was hospitalized and is expected to survive, but he too was not placed under arrest, the sheriff's office confirmed. Investigators have not disclosed why neither occupant was held in connection with the suspected stolen vehicle, and the motivation and circumstances behind the incident remain under investigation, according to sheriff's spokesperson Juan Marquez.
Detectives are interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, and reviewing all aspects of the event, per the sheriff's department. The lack of any arrests so far leaves open questions about the vehicle's stolen status and what exactly triggered officers to fire.
Countywide Rules Bar SDPD From Investigating Itself
The Sheriff's Office, not SDPD, is leading the criminal investigation because of a regional Memorandum of Understanding signed by 17 San Diego County law enforcement agencies in April 2022. That agreement bars local police departments from investigating their own officer-involved shootings, a structure the sheriff's office says was designed to eliminate conflicts of interest and enhance public transparency.
Once the sheriff's criminal investigation wraps up, its findings go to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, which will conduct its own review to evaluate potential criminal liability. Separately, SDPD will run an internal administrative review of Zambrano's compliance with department policy, a process that operates independently of the DA's criminal review.
Policy Limits Firing at Moving Vehicles
SDPD Procedure 1.04 generally prohibits officers from firing at occupants of a moving vehicle unless it poses an immediate threat of death or serious physical injury and no reasonable alternative exists, according to a policy breakdown from KPBS. The department's own policy notes that firearms are generally ineffective at stopping a moving vehicle. Between 2012 and 2018, San Diego County officers shot at people inside vehicles 20 times, missing the driver on eight occasions and striking a passenger in one instance, per KPBS's analysis of internal investigation records.
Any eventual review of Zambrano's actions will be measured against California's deadly force standard under Assembly Bill 392, which the City of San Diego notes raised the bar from allowing officers to use force when merely reasonable to permitting it only when necessary to defend against an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury. State transparency law also requires agencies to release body-worn camera footage from critical incidents within 45 days, though SDPD has said it aims to release such video within 7 to 10 business days when feasible.
Civilian Oversight Still Ahead
After the criminal and administrative reviews conclude, the case will also go before the City of San Diego's Commission on Police Practices, the independent civilian oversight body voters created to evaluate officer-involved shootings and serious use-of-force cases. That review sits apart from both the DA's criminal assessment and SDPD's internal policy check, adding another layer of scrutiny before the case is considered closed.
For now, the central facts of what happened on Beyer Boulevard remain unresolved. Detectives continue gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses as the sheriff's office, the DA's office, and SDPD each prepare to examine the shooting from their own angle.
