Antelope Valley Press

Deputy involved in Rosamond shootout

By ALLISON GATLIN Valley Press Staff Writer

ROSAMOND — A Kern County Sheriff’s deputy was shot, early Friday morning, in a shootout with a suspect who was later arrested.

Deputy Michael Valdez was shot in the forehead and miraculously survived, Kern County Sheriff Johnny Youngblood said. The bullet was recovered from his hat. He was treated at Antelope Valley Medical Center and released.

The shooting occurred after Valdez and a second deputy responded, at about 3 a.m., to the Sierra Vista Mobile Home Park, off Sierra Highway south of Orange Street, to multiple calls of someone checking car door handles and setting off alarms.

Valdez saw a person matching the description blocks away, in the 2900 block of Diamond Street and

gave the information to the second deputy, Danielle Henderson, in a second patrol car, Youngblood said in a Friday press conference.

The suspect fired at Valdez and the deputy briefly lost sight of him. When the deputy once again spotted him, the suspect shot four or five more times, Youngblood said, hitting Valdez once in the forehead.

“The exchange of gunfire lasted very few seconds,” he said.

Valdez then returned to his patrol car for a shotgun and began to establish a perimeter until the second deputy arrived. He had “a pretty good idea” where the suspect went, Youngblood said.

The Kern County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team and additional personnel from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, California Highway Patrol and other agencies were called in to establish the two-block perimeter.

Eventually the suspect was located in a residence in the 2900 block of Desert Street, where he surrendered at about 7:30 a.m., without further incident and officials recovered the gun believed to have been used in the shooting.

Deputies arrested Edgar Rojas, 19, on charges of attempted murder, assault with a firearm on a peace officer, felony resisting arrest with violence, possession of an unserialized handgun, unlawful possession of a loaded firearm in public, tampering with a vehicle and prowling.

Valdez completed his field training just five weeks ago, while Henderson has about five years’ experience, Youngblood said.

“It’s a dangerous job we do,” he said. “These two deputies were well-trained.”

Calling Valdez “heroic,” Youngblood praised him for continuing to “stay in the fight, continued to protect the community” after being shot, until others arrived and a perimeter was established.

Calls as the one which set off this incident are “the type of calls deputies respond to 15 times a night,” Youngblood said. “Not a dangerous call, normally.”

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2022-12-03T08:00:00.0000000Z

2022-12-03T08:00:00.0000000Z

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