Teen killed in gang-related Santa Rosa drive-by shooting

The Santa Rosa Police Department has identified the victim of Friday’s drive-by shooting in southwest Santa Rosa, and the news is even grimmer than imagined. It’s a 15-year-old boy who was killed.

The police believe the shooting was related to a gang rivalry. Chief John Cregan called the incident “a wake-up call for Santa Rosa” and cast it as proof that his department needs more help in combating the problem.

“Losing a 15-year-old child to gang violence is a tragedy,” Cregan wrote in a Saturday text message to The Press Democrat. “We are seeing youth at a very young age actively involved in street gang activity.”

In this case, Cregan said, evidence collected at the scene showed “this is clearly a gang-motivated crime.”

He declined to offer details. “I’m not going to jeopardize this active investigation by providing specific facts on the gang nexus at this time,” Cregan said.

As the police chief wrote, SRPD lost its Gang Crimes Team in 2019 due to “staffing issues.”

He wants it back.

“I served both as a Gang Crimes Team detective and later as the sergeant of the team,” Cregan texted. “This issue is near and dear to my heart, and I know the community pain that is created by gang violence. This is a communitywide issue, and it will take communitywide involvement to make a difference. This tragedy is a wake-up call for Santa Rosa.”

Cregan said a Gang Crimes Team sergeant position will be funded by Measure H, the Sonoma County public safety tax, and that he will use existing resources to move four detectives to the reconfigured team.

“Our new Gang Crimes Team will focus on reducing gang violence, but they will also play a key role in early prevention and intervention efforts,” Cregan said. “We work closely with the Santa Rosa Violence Prevention Partnership and community based organizations to bring resources to families in need.”

SRPD also has a Special Enforcement Team, made up of four officers and a sergeant, that is focused on street violence. That team helped police seize 236 illegal firearms in 2022, including 74 “ghost guns,” according to Cregan.

Whatever the range of solutions may be, they are too late for one Santa Rosa teenager.

At 5:39 p.m. Friday, Santa Rosa police officers were dispatched to an apartment complex in the 2300 block of Corby Avenue, north of Hearn Avenue, regarding a gunshot victim. When officers arrived, they located a 15-year-old male victim on the ground in the parking lot. He had been shot at least once and was not responsive.

Officers rendered medical aide until fire and ambulance personnel arrived, police said. The victim was transported to Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and was later pronounced dead.

According to Santa Rosa police investigators, several young males were standing in the parking lot of the apartment complex when an unknown suspect fired three to five shots. The victim was struck by the gunfire and fell to the ground.

The suspect then fled the scene in a silver-colored SUV and was not located by responding officers.

Detectives are still investigating the motive for the shooting, the news release said, but they believe the suspect and victim were associated with rival gangs,.

The department is not releasing the victim’s name, because of his age.

Santa Rosa police detectives are continuing to investigate the homicide, and are looking for anyone who witnessed it or has information that would assist with the case. The Sonoma County Alliance Community Engagement and Safety Rewards Fund is offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to arrests.

Anyone with information about the investigation is encouraged to contact Santa Rosa police through their online tip line: www.srcity.org/CrimeTips.

“We are also asking local residents to check surveillance footage at their homes to determine if any relevant images were captured,” Cregan said.

Several people gathered Friday evening on the edge of the driveway leading to the complex, waiting for police to allow them to enter their homes.

Others stood outside their homes along Corby Avenue, which remained open as police vehicles lined the street.

Among the onlookers was Jesus Garza, 67, who said he was in his kitchen when he heard four rapid shots. He rushed outside and saw throngs of neighbors doing the same.

“It was crazy. No one knew what happened,” Garza said. “I think everyone was either scared or confused.”

The slaying is Santa Rosa’s fourth homicide of 2023 and the fifth overall in Sonoma County this year.