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Setha Phangdy

Age : 38

Gender : Male

Race : Asian

Date : 08/19/2021

Location : Ballard Street and Decker Street

City : El Cajon

County : San Diego

State : California

Agency : El Cajon Police Department

Officer(s) :Kevin Reilly

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during investigation

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 08/19/2021, El Cajon Police Department Sgt. Kevin Reilly killed 38-year-old Setha Phangdy near Ballard Street and Decker Street while responding to a reported shooting at a nearby business. The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office later conducted a detailed review of the encounter and issued its findings in April 2022.
According to investigators, police received an emergency call reporting that a man had been shot inside a business. Police alleged that Phangdy had shot an employee and then left on foot. A witness provided police with a description, which officers broadcast over the radio. Reilly encountered Phangdy a short distance away while driving a marked patrol SUV.
According to the subsequent investigation, Phangdy was standing in the roadway when Reilly approached. Investigators concluded that Phangdy pointed a handgun toward Reilly and fired repeatedly at the patrol vehicle. Reilly stopped and ducked below the dashboard as bullets struck his vehicle. Police initially reported three bullet strikes to the SUV; the later prosecutor’s review stated that four rounds struck Reilly’s vehicle.
Reilly then accelerated directly toward Phangdy and struck him with the police SUV, knocking him to the pavement. Reilly got out with his firearm and saw Phangdy sit up. According to the DA's reconstruction, Phangdy attempted to reload his handgun while Reilly repeatedly ordered him to drop it. Reilly then fired, striking Phangdy four times.
Other officers arrived and provided medical treatment until paramedics transported Phangdy to a hospital, where he died. The medical examiner determined that he died from multiple gunshot wounds and classified the death as homicide.
Investigators recovered the handgun police attributed to Phangdy. Police described it as an unserialized privately manufactured firearm, commonly called a ghost gun, equipped with an extended magazine. Police also reported recovering six additional magazines containing more than 80 rounds.
Reilly's body-worn camera did not record the shooting. El Cajon police said Reilly did not activate it because gunfire began almost immediately after he arrived. Consequently, there is no body-camera recording from Reilly independently documenting the critical initial seconds of the confrontation.
The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the shooting after receiving the investigative file in December 2021 and additional materials in early 2022. On 04/15/2022, prosecutors concluded that Reilly would not face criminal charges. The DA determined that Reilly reasonably believed Phangdy presented an immediate deadly threat and found both Reilly's use of his vehicle against Phangdy and his subsequent gunfire legally justified.
The prosecutor specifically considered the period after the police SUV knocked Phangdy down. The DA concluded that the threat had not ended because investigators determined Phangdy still possessed the handgun and was attempting to reload it rather than surrendering when Reilly fired. The office therefore found insufficient evidence to establish criminal liability for the four fatal shots.
No subsequent wrongful-death lawsuit, civil settlement, criminal prosecution of Reilly, or publicly documented family challenge to the shooting was located in the later public record reviewed for this update.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
Kevin Reilly had worked for the El Cajon Police Department for approximately 16 years when he killed Phangdy. He was a sergeant assigned to patrol and was in uniform and driving a marked police vehicle.
Reilly remained with the El Cajon Police Department after the shooting and subsequently worked in the department's Investigations Division. By October 2024, department records identified him as a lieutenant and Patrol Division commander.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/story/2021-08-19/el-cajon-police-officer-wounds-shooting-suspect-during-gun-battle
https://www.kpbs.org/news/local/2021/08/19/el-cajon-police-shooting
https://www.sdcda.org/content/MediaRelease/2020_2021/Setha%20Phangdy.pdf
https://www.sdcda.org/content/MediaRelease/OIS%20News%20Release%207-1-22.pdf
https://www.10news.com/news/local-news/das-office-clears-10-officers-in-seven-shootings-two-of-which-were-fatal
https://timesofsandiego.com/crime/2022/07/01/das-office-clears-10-officers-in-seven-shootings-two-of-which-were-fatal/
https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/san-diego-das-office-clears-10-officers-in-7-shootings-2-of-which-were-fatal/2985636/
https://www.elcajon.gov/Home/Components/News/News/6111/112