Shooting Suspect Talked With Officers For 20 Min. Before Suddenly Killing Them

Santa Cruz Police detectives talked with Jeremy Goulet for more than 20 minutes before he surprised them with a .45-caliber gun and killed them.

Those details were released this morning by Santa Cruz County Sheriff Phil Wowak in a press conference following the slaying of Santa Cruz Police Det. Sgt. Loran "Butch" Baker and Det. Elizabeth Butler on Tuesday.

Baker and Butler stopped by Goulet's home on Branciforte Avenue just after 3 p.m., Wowak said. They interviewed him for more than 20 minutes before he suddenly surprised them with a gun and shot them.  

"Neither officer was wearing body armor however body armor would not have helped," Wowak said.

Goulet's .45-caliber gun was registered to him, Wowak said. A stray bullet also struck a woman on the street in the leg.

The officers were investigating Goulet for a misdemeanor sexual assault case. He had been fired from his job at the Kind Grind coffee shop in the harbor after an employee there filed a sexual complaint against him.  It wasn't the first time he'd been investigated for sex crimes.

"Goulet had had multiple sex related arrests including a rape arrest in the state of Hawaii," Wowak said.

The sheriff's department is also investigating Goulet on another case of inappropriately touching a juvenile.

When the shooting happened, "the officers did not have the opportunity to call on the radio. They barely had the time to turn and run," Wowak said.

After Goulet stole Baker's car, a fire truck blocked his path on Doyle Street, which steered Goulet into an alleyway which led back to his house, Wowak said. That's where he encountered a team of six deputies and Santa Cruz Police officers

Three Santa Cruz Police officers and one Santa Cruz County Sheriff's deputy shot Goulet. All four are on paid administrative leave per department and office policies, Wowak said. 

Goulet had his passport and a plane ticket to fly to New Mexico this week on him when he died, Wowak said. The Sheriff said investigators were looking into what his plans were.

Information about memorial services for the fallen officers should be released by Santa Cruz Police Chief Kevin Vogel this afternoon.

Santa Cruz Police Department officers are off work until Friday. California Highway Patrol and Santa Cruz County Sheriff's deputies continue to patrol the city.

Former police spokesman Zach Friend said the department is still in the process of healing.

"Its going to take a long time for us to heal," he said.

Other stories about the Santa Cruz shootings:

• Update: Cop Deaths Mark 'Darkest Day' in Santa Cruz Police History

• Santa Cruz Police Shooting Reaction: 'Time to Stop the Violence'