The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office says deputies responding to reports of a family disturbance in Nipomo Sunday night shot and killed a man who fired at them.
It happened at around 6:30 p.m. at an apartment complex on the 700 block of Hill Street.
The sheriff’s office says initial reports were that a man was inside an apartment, threatening to kill his mother, who also shares the home with the suspect’s grandmother.
When deputies arrived, the sheriff’s office says the suspect was in the doorway of the first-floor unit before going inside, getting a shotgun and pointing it at deputies.
The sheriff’s office says the suspect, identified as Joseph Munoz, 48, fired at the deputies, who returned fire and hit the suspect.
Life-saving measures were performed, but Munoz was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the sheriff’s office.
The deputies were not injured and were reportedly placed on paid administrative leave per department policy. They are also receiving support services.
The sheriff’s office says that while Munoz does not have a known address, he would often stay in Nipomo and is known to law enforcement.
He has a criminal record that includes convictions for felony domestic battery, felony DUI, felony possession of a controlled substance for sale, and felony conviction for voluntary manslaughter, according to the sheriff’s office.
KSBY previously reported that in January of 2015, Munoz was sentenced to 16 years in prison for his involvement in a deadly fight in Oceano in 2013. The sheriff’s office states he spent approximately 12 years behind bars.
Brian Frisch lives across the street from the San Luis Bay apartments where Sunday's shooting occurred. He says while he's seen law enforcement at the complex at times, this is the first time he's heard gunshots in the area.
“There were, I think, two or three shots at the very beginning, and then there was quite a few more, and all of a sudden we just look out and the sheriffs are drawn and streets were pretty empty,” Frisch told Community Reporter Makayla Richardson. “I thought it was fireworks for the first second. We walked to the back of the house, figured, well, might as well get to the back of the house so that way we’re not in fire.”
Investigators remained on scene into the early-morning hours on Monday.
The affected area of Hill Street has since reopened.
Anyone with information on the incident is asked to contact the sheriff’s Detective Division at (805) 781-4500.
The names of the deputies involved have not been released.
This is the first deputy-involved shooting the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office has been involved in this year.
