A jury heard opening statements Monday in the trial of a man charged with the ambush shooting of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer three years ago.

Deputy Ryan M. Clinkunbroomer of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) was killed on Sept. 16, 2023, in an ambush shooting at the intersection of Sierra Highway and Avenue Q in Palmdale.

The accused shooter, Kevin Eduardo Cataneo Salazar, 32, allegedly confessed after being identified with a vehicle seen approaching Clinkunbroomer from behind at a red light at the time of the shooting. Salazar was arrested after a several-hour standoff, during which he barricaded himself inside his family’s home in Palmdale.

Salazar entered dual pleas of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity in the case, one in which he also faces special circumstances of lying in wait, murder of a peace officer and discharging a .22-caliber revolver from a vehicle.

Salazar’s family said he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia five years before the shooting and often experienced delusions and auditory hallucinations. His mother told the Los Angeles Times in 2023 that Salazar had stopped taking his medication. As an adult, law enforcement told the family there was nothing they could do to enforce his treatment when deputies had been called to the family home in the past.

Salazar could face life in prison if convicted as charged and found sane. If Salazar is instead determined to have been insane at the time of the killing, he would be confined to a state hospital rather than prison.

A native of Castaic, Clinkunbroomer, 30, served the Sheriff’s Department for eight years and was a fourth-generation member, following the footsteps of his great-grandfather, grandfather, father and mother.

Clinkunbroomer graduated from West Ranch High School, where he ran cross country and participated in the West Ranch TV program. He recently became engaged, proposing just days before his death on the couple’s second anniversary.

After Salazar’s arrest in 2023, Clinkunbroomer’s family spoke about his personal accomplishments, sharing their heartfelt sentiments about Ryan’s unwavering dedication and commitment to the Sheriff’s Department.

“Our son Ryan was a dedicated, hard-working Deputy Sheriff, who enjoyed working here at the Palmdale Station. He was proud to work along the side of his partners, that he considered brothers and sisters as he sacrificed daily to better the community that he served. Ryan made the ultimate sacrifice in doing so. Ryan was recently engaged to the love of his life as our firstborn son, Ryan will be greatly missed by his family, friends, and the Sheriff’s Department as a whole. Please keep Ryan’s family friends and colleagues in your prayers and respect everyone’s privacy during our time of mourning. Thank you from the bottom of my heart the Clinkunbroomer family.”

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