Turlock man charged in burglary at former Flying Lady restaurant
remains in jail
A Morgan Hill police officer told superiors his gun “misfired” when he shot a burglary suspect in the arm early Sunday morning, according to court records. The officer was attempting to apprehend a 41-year-old Turlock man fleeing the area of a private golf course in the eastern foothills.
In a statement later that morning to Sgt. Dave Myers, Officer Steve Pennington said he had “misfired” his Sig Sauer, .40-caliber handgun when attempting to apprehend Scott A. Campione. Pennington, a four-year veteran of the department, remains on paid administrative leave while the investigation is under way. The statement was contained in a police report filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court. Details about how the “misfire” occurred were not included in the report.
Campione, who is facing two felony counts and one misdemeanor charge, was taken into custody by Pennington without further incident. The suspect was not armed.
Initially, the suspect and officer did not realize he had been shot, according to the police report filed in connection with the charges against Campione.
Pennington, according to police reports, was waiting with MHPD Officer Mindy Zen by police vehicles at the foot of the driveway leading to the former Flying Lady restaurant on Foothill Avenue when Campione came down the driveway, attempting to flee in his pickup without the headlights on and at a high rate of speed.
The pickup was later discovered to be stolen. It is still not clear what happened next. According to reports, MHPD Officer Greg Dini, reserve officer Ken DeLuna and Sgt. Mark Brazeal had walked up the driveway to the boarded-up restaurant, where a suspected burglary was in progress. Zen saw the truck racing down the driveway and began running towards a patrol car, concerned there might be a collision, according to her statement. While she was running, she said, she heard a shot and ducked down behind the car.
Zen heard no other gunfire, she said in her statement, and went to assist Pennington with Campione, who had apparently left the truck. Zen said Pennington told her he had “misfired” his weapon, and he believed the bullet had gone into the ground.
Other officers were searching for other suspects, possibly three or four, seen fleeing the scene, but did not find them. A subsequent search of the area by police and Sheriff’s Office deputies, including a K-9 unit, was unsuccessful. The circumstances of the shooting are a part of the investigation, MHPD Lt. Joe Sampson said Thursday afternoon.
“In an effort to balance the interest of the public’s right to know with the right of the officer and Mr. Campione to a fair and unprejudiced trial, further details of the proximate cause of the shooting will be available after the District Attorney has reviewed the case and issued statement,” Sampson said.
Karyn Sinunu, chief assistant deputy district attorney, said Thursday afternoon she expects to review the department’s investigation into the officer-involved shooting next week. The District Attorney’s office reviews all such incidents.
“The shooting portion of the investigations will obviously be completed first, likely by the end of next week,” Sampson said Thursday. “We’ll then have a sit-down, meet in person with the DA’s office to go over the case.
“The burglary portion, that case is on its way to the court after the arraignment yesterday. The internal portion, the third arm is the one we really have the most time to be meticulous with, and that one is certainly impacted by what the DA decides.”
The burglary occurred at approximately 2am on the site of a private golf course now owned by John Fry and partners. Police were at the scene of the restaurant, closed since 1994, after a golf course groundskeeper had reported a break-in.
Pennington told Brazeal that he originally believed the round had gone into the ground. Campione had been placed in Zen’s patrol car, which also was occupied by a civilian ride-along, according to the police report.
Zen in her report said the suspect had complained to the ride-along about pain to his arm. “I advised the ride-along and suspect the handcuffs would not be removed until the scene was stabilized,” Zen reported.
In the report Zen reported that the suspect a few minutes later “advised that his arm was hurting, that he heard over the police radio there had been a misfire, and he may have been hit in the arm.”
Zen said she checked the suspect and found a dark, wet area on his right biceps. She said there was blood on her palm after squeezing the suspect’s sweater.
A short time later, Campione was taken by Pennington to Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy where he was released to police after treatment. Campione, an unemployed construction worker, was arraigned Wednesday in the Santa Clara County Court facility in San Martin. He was charged with burglary and auto theft, both felonies, and a misdemeanor charge of possessing burglary tools.
Campione, who is scheduled to enter a plea on Tuesday, remains in county jail in lieu of $15,000 bail. On Monday, he was identified by police as living in Modesto.
According to court documents, Campione served time for a prior charge of possession of a controlled substance for sale and was convicted earlier of possession of stolen property, possession of a controlled substance for sale, manufacture of a controlled substance and identification forgery. Pennington, 48, has worked for the MHPD for four years. Prior to that, he worked for the City of Morgan Hill from 1987-2001 as a housing rehabilitation worker and code enforcement officer.
Marilyn Dubil covers education and law enforcement for The Times. She can be reached by e-mail at md****@*************es.com or phoning (408) 779-4106, ext. 202
