Officer who tried to save toddler found his career later in life

By JEFF JARDINE
jjardine@modbee.com

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Whenever there's an unusual incident or action of any kind, you might think, "Wow, what were the odds of that particular person being there at that particular time?"

For Modesto police officer Jerry "J.J." Ramar, those odds go well beyond being a part of the helicopter unit that responded Saturday night to a most fateful and tragic call: a man stomping his 2-year-old son to death along a rural road west of Turlock.

The odds transcended Ramar jumping out of the chopper as it landed, running up to an electrified fence, pointing his gun at 27-year-old Sergio Aguiar and ordering him to stop his maniacal assault on his lifeless son.

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And they go beyond Ramar firing a single shot — truly a shot in the dark — through the dust stirred up by the aircraft's blades, killing Aguiar instantly.

That's because Ramar followed a less-traveled path to become a police officer to be at that point at that very moment.

Some who go into law enforcement go to the police academy right out of high school, junior college or after a hitch in the military. Assuming they survive the background investigations and drug screens, many begin their careers with agencies in small cities.

Ramar comes from another group: Those who tire of life in the private sector and want something different. He entered the academy at age 30, graduated at 31 and joined the 1,400-officer San Jose Police Department in January 2002. He commuted to work for 2½ years until he was hired by Modesto in the spring of 2004.

When the incident occurred late Saturday, the 37-year-old easily could have been reviewing the night's receipts in the Mallard's Restaurant he once managed and later co-owned in Stockton. He could have been checking the pantry to make sure there was enough food to handle the next day's business. He could have been doing any other task a small-business owner does every day to keep the place profitable.

Instead, he traded customer service for an oath to protect the public. In this case, it meant trying try to save a child who, in all probability, was dead before Ramar arrived.

What compelled him to switch careers midstream? Right now, he's not allowed to say. Citing the usual internal investigative and legal protocol after any officer-involved shooting, Modesto Police Chief Roy Wasden prohibited Ramar from talking to the media until the formal probe is completed.

In the past, officers involved even in the most obviously justifiable shootings have had to wait several months to learn whether they could face repercussions for their actions. But District Attorney Birgit Fladager, who promised during her campaign to resolve officer-involved shooting cases within 30 days, said this one should have the desired quick turnaround. Officials from her office began "shadowing the investigation that night," she said.

"There's not going to be any issue with this case," Fladager said. "But we do need to follow the process and be thorough."

The gag order on Ramar doesn't limit others from talking about him, though.

In 1989, entrepreneur Dan Costa hired Ramar, then an 18-year-old senior at Beyer High School, as a bus boy at the original Mallard's in Modesto. Ramar wanted to become an engineer and needed to pay his way through college, according to a 1999 story in The Bee. He could attend school at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton during the day and work at night.

Steve Chappell, Ramar's best friend since they were fourth-graders at Capistrano Elementary in Modesto, said said he found Ramar's choice of occupations intriguing.