Officer, suspect in fatal Newman shooting identified

The man fatally shot by a Newman police officer has been identified as 55-year-old Mauro Garnica of Newman, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department reported Friday afternoon.

About 8:40 Wednesday morning, police responded to the 400 block of Bobolink Avenue after a report of a domestic dispute that had escalated to a fight with weapons.

Officers arrived to find Garnica standing over the victim in the front yard and attacking her with a weapon, the Sheriff’s Department said. An officer fired his weapon, striking Garnica. The man was taken to a hospital emergency room, where he later died. The female victim was treated at the scene for her injuries.

The officer has been identified as Edgar Lopez, an eight-year veteran of the Newman Police Department. He has been put on paid administrative leave, which is a standard procedure with all officer-involved shootings.

The Sheriff’s Department, which is conducting the criminal and administrative investigations of the incident, has not said what the relationship between Garnica and the victim was. The type of weapon Garnica used also has not been disclosed.

The department has not released details of what transpired after officers arrived at the scene, such as whether Garnica was commanded to drop his weapon and, if so, how he responded.

The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office is conducting an independent review of the incident.

This story was originally published February 17, 2017 at 3:28 PM with the headline "Officer, suspect in fatal Newman shooting identified."