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Juan Carlos Chabel-Orellano

Age :

Gender : Male

Race : Unknown

Date :

Location : Daniels Lane and Union Avenue

City : Bakersfield

County : Kern

State : California

Agency : Bakersfield Police Department

Officer(s) :Andrew Ferguson, James King, Chad Rogers, Cortez Summit, Anthony Flores, Nicholas Ashby, Dominic Ramirez, Scott Lazenby

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during attempted arrest and foot pursuit

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 12/20/2022, Bakersfield police responded to a report that a man was threatening to shoot a railroad employee near a homeless encampment. Police encountered Juan Carlos Chabel-Orellano, who police alleged pointed a handgun toward an officer and ran; officers fired at him as he fled but did not strike him.

Chabel-Orellano entered a tent encampment, where police said he raised and lowered a tent flap while ignoring commands, prompting officers to fire again. He fled the encampment, and officers fired additional rounds because they believed he remained armed; those shots also missed him.

Police pursued Chabel-Orellano on foot and in vehicles while other officers positioned themselves ahead of him. Police said he approached officers holding a metallic object and did not comply with commands; officers opened fire and Chabel-Orellano fell to the ground.

As Chabel-Orellano sat up with his hands not visible, officers fired additional rounds, killing him. Police subsequently determined the metallic object in his hand was a knife; the handgun he allegedly pointed earlier was recovered where he had discarded it near the encampment.

The eight officers who fired were Andrew Ferguson, James King, Chad Rogers, Cortez Summit, Anthony Flores, Nicholas Ashby, Dominic Ramirez and Scott Lazenby.

The California Department of Justice completed its AB 1506 investigation in August 2026 and determined there was insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers acted without an intent to defend themselves or others from what they reasonably perceived as an imminent threat; DOJ declined criminal charges against all eight officers.

DOJ issued 10 recommendations arising from the shooting, including additional training on firearms safety and awareness of surroundings, identifying targets before firing, deadly force against fleeing people, warnings before deadly force, body-camera activation, de-escalation and communication with people who may not understand English; DOJ also recommended prohibiting officers from discussing shootings with one another before giving formal statements.

OFFICER BACKGROUND:
Andrew Ferguson, James King, Chad Rogers, Cortez Summit, Anthony Flores, Nicholas Ashby, Dominic Ramirez and Scott Lazenby were identified by the California DOJ as the eight Bakersfield police officers involved in the fatal shooting.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/california-department-justice-releases-report-officer-involved-shooting-juan
https://oag.ca.gov/ois-incidents/current-cases