Deputy Involved In Fatal Shooting Of Marine Identified
SANTA ANA (CBS) — The deputy who fatally shot a highly-decorated Camp Pendleton-based Marine in the parking lot of San Clemente High School on Feb. 7 was identified Saturday.
The deputy was identified as Darren Sangberg, a 15-year veteran of the department.
A spokesperson for the Orange County Sheriff's, Jim Amormino, said no other details would be made public today. Amormino could not confirm reports that Sangberg is, himself, a former Marine.
Sgt. Manuel Levi Loggins Jr., 31, was shot about 4:45 a.m. on that Tuesday morning, after crashing his SUV through a gate in the school's parking lot. His daughters, aged 9 and 14, were in the back of the SUV at the time of the shooting.
After first saying the deputy thought he was in danger of being hit by the SUV, the department later said the deputy was viewed to be a danger to the children inside the vehicle, Amormino said last week.
"Due to (Loggins') irrational behavior and his failure to obey any commands, (the deputy) was concerned for the safety of the children," Amormino said last week. "He was concerned that if he let Mr. Loggins drive off displaying that irrational behavior then the kids were in danger."
The shooting has triggered a war of words between Marine Corps officials at nearby Camp Pendleton, where Loggins was attached, and in the sheriff's department. Marines have said Loggins was a stable and non-emotional man.
A deputies union official has defended Sangberg's action, called Loggins' behavior "irrational" and said he had placed his daughters at risk.
That triggered an unusual statement from Loggins' commanding officer, who denounced the deputies union statement as "incorrect and deeply hurtful," the Los Angeles Times reported.
The sheriff's office has called the incident a tragedy, and promised full cooperation with the outside-agency investigation being conducted by the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
Loggins, a native of Joliet, Ill., had enlisted in the Marine Corps in October 1998 and was a Transportation Management Specialist at Camp Pendleton, base officials said.
During his military career, he earned a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, two Navy Unit Commendations, three Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, the National Defense Service Medal, a Korean Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
Loggins friends and family have repeatedly mentioned he was a devout Christian.
