{"id":95443,"date":"2023-08-25T22:09:45","date_gmt":"2023-08-26T03:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=95443"},"modified":"2023-08-25T22:09:45","modified_gmt":"2023-08-26T03:09:45","slug":"95443","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=95443","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

“Only the police should have guns”<\/em>
\n(You ever notice that all the gun control laws the demoncraps want always exclude<\/em> the police?)<\/p>\n

Ex-cop [he was retired<\/em><\/strong>] was gunning for estranged wife, then shot randomly, killing 3 and wounding 6 at O.C. bar<\/a><\/p>\n

A gunman who killed three people Wednesday night at a beloved local bar in Trabuco Canyon and wounded six others \u2014 including his estranged wife \u2014 was a former police officer, according to officials.<\/p>\n

The Orange County Sheriff\u2019s Department identified the gunman as John Snowling, a retired Ventura police sergeant.<\/strong> When John Snowling, 59, came to Cook\u2019s Corner, his target was his wife, who was a regular at the bar on Santiago Canyon Road. He fired on her and then began \u201cshooting randomly,\u201d Sheriff Don Barnes said Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n

Snowling entered the bar around 7 p.m. Wednesday during its weekly $8 spaghetti night \u2014 a family-friendly event \u2014 armed with two handguns, Barnes said. The retired cop walked up to his wife and immediately shot her once, wounding her, then shot the woman with whom she was dining. That woman, who has not been identified, later died.<\/p>\n

There was no conversation or argument that preceded Snowling opening fire on his estranged wife, Barnes said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Snowling … then started randomly shooting at patrons within Cook\u2019s Corner,\u201d Barnes said. \u201cThat progressed to the outside area.\u201d<\/p>\n

At one point, Snowling returned to his truck in an upper parking lot, where he was confronted by a man from the bar \u2014 whom Snowling also shot, Barnes said. That man, who also has not been identified, later died.<\/p>\n

When deputies arrived \u2014 within two minutes of the first 911 call \u2014 they found Snowling in the parking lot, Barnes said. The former cop began firing at deputies, hitting multiple law enforcement vehicles.<\/p>\n

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A gunfight ensued, and \u201cit was gunfire from those deputies that ultimately took the life\u201d of Snowling, Barnes said. Orange County Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer said seven deputies opened fire, firing at least 75 shots.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

After the shooting, deputies recovered four weapons Snowling had brought to the scene: two pistols, a revolver and a shotgun, Barnes said. All were acquired legally.<\/p>\n

\n
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Barnes identified one of the men who was killed as John Leehey, 67, of Irvine. He did not identify the two others who were killed, as officials have not yet notified next of kin.<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

The six people who were injured in the shooting were taken to Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo on Wednesday night. Two were in critical condition \u2014 a man shot in the chest and a woman shot in the jaw, according to James Chisum, a spokesman for the hospital. The woman, believed to be Snowling\u2019s estranged wife, Marie Snowling, was transferred overnight to UC Irvine Medical Center, Chisum confirmed Thursday.<\/p>\n

The four other victims, all men, were stable, Chisum said. One was released from the hospital late Wednesday, and two others with minor injuries were expected to be released Thursday. A fourth man, shot in the arm, was likely to have surgery Thursday.<\/p>\n

No children or deputies were injured in the shooting.<\/p>\n

The Sheriff\u2019s Department confirmed that Snowling\u2019s wife was\u00a0among the injured<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Johnson, pianist for the Orange County band that was performing at the bar Wednesday night, said two members of the M-Street Band \u201cwere hit and were hospitalized but stable.\u201d Johnson, drummer Brian Lynch and singer Debbie Johnson\u00a0said in a video<\/a>\u00a0that guitarist Ed Means and bassist Dave Stretch were in the hospital. Lynch said they were \u201call going to be OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

Officials declined to identify the other injured victims.<\/p>\n

Barnes said investigators were still searching for a motive. Snowling, who used to share a home with his wife in Camarillo, was most recently living in Ohio, Barnes said. He recently traveled back to Southern California, and it wasn\u2019t immediately clear if he followed his estranged wife to the bar or found out she was going there, Barnes said.<\/p>\n

On Thursday morning, heavily armed Orange County sheriff\u2019s deputies surrounded Snowling\u2019s home in the Camarillo neighborhood of El Capitan Place, not far from Adolfo Camarillo High School.<\/p>\n

Deputies ordered any occupants to exit as they prepared to serve a search warrant. Two vehicles were in the driveway, but no one exited.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t immediately clear what deputies seized or hoped to find in the search.<\/p>\n

Snowling worked for the Ventura Police Department from 1986 to 2014, rising to the rank of sergeant, according to a department spokesman. He served as the president of the city\u2019s police union in 2008 and 2009, records show.<\/p>\n

In December 2022, Marie Snowling filed for divorce, writing that she had been estranged from her husband for two years, court filings show.<\/p>\n

The couple had been married almost 32 years when they separated in November 2020, her attorney wrote, citing \u201cirreconcilable differences\u201d as the reason for the split. The case file contains no allegations of acrimony or abuse.<\/p>\n

In February, John Snowling was served with the divorce papers in Newark, Ohio, records show. He had yet to respond to his wife\u2019s petition.<\/p>\n

His attorney, Tristan Tegroen, told The Times he was shocked by the shooting Wednesday, given how measured and fair the divorce proceedings had been so far.<\/p>\n

Tegroen noted he is accustomed to rancorous divorces, but said with the Snowlings, \u201cthere was nothing like that \u2014 nothing at all.\u201d As the lawyers in the case went about identifying and valuing their assets, Marie Snowling did not seek a restraining order against her husband, raise accusations of abuse or say she was fearful of him, he said.<\/p>\n

Tegroen did not get the sense that any one issue had prompted the split, only that the two felt their marriage had run its course. \u201cJohn was living in Ohio and she was here, and they were living apart,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, this came as a horrible shock to me,\u201d Tegroen said. \u201cThere was nothing on the radar to suggest he might do this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marie Snowling\u2019s lawyer, Kenneth Henjum, said his team was awaiting further information about her condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Snowling family is in shock at the events from last night and are requesting their privacy,\u201d Henjum said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\n
\"A<\/picture>\n
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John Snowling, then a Ventura police officer, patrols the Pacific View Mall in Ventura in 2000. Snowling, who retired in 2014, was identified as the gunman in Wednesday night\u2019s mass shooting in Trabuco Canyon.<\/div>\n
(Carlos Chavez \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

James Goldsmith, 68, lived two doors down from the Snowlings in Camarillo for more than two decades. Marie Snowling had moved out to live with her sick mother in Orange County a few years ago, he said, adding that he knew the couple had been going through \u201cmarital issues\u201d but never heard any shouting or saw the police come by due to domestic disputes.<\/p>\n

\u201cJohn was always kind of a standoffish kind of person,\u201d Goldsmith said. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t the most personable guy, not that I can say that there was anything really negative. He wasn\u2019t the type of neighbor that you\u2019d get the warm fuzzies from.\u201d<\/p>\n

He described Marie Snowling as an \u201cabsolute sweetheart.\u201d She was the more social one of the couple, according to Goldsmith.<\/p>\n

Goldsmith didn\u2019t know whether Marie had a new partner but said she often posted on Facebook about her life after filing for divorce.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think she wanted to have friends and live life, and that\u2019s why I think she made the move that she did,\u201d Goldsmith said. \u201cIt\u2019s sad that he couldn\u2019t allow that and let her live her own life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Snowling had recently purchased a house in Ohio and was staying there most of the time, Goldsmith said. He most recently saw Snowling come back a few months ago to do some maintenance work on the house, he said.<\/p>\n

Marie Snowling had moved to a mobile home community in Orange, where she\u2019d recently become a manager, a job her late mother previously held, residents told The Times.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday night, neighbor Mary Talian watched out her window, waiting for Snowling to come home. Talian, 82, knew her neighbor was at Cook\u2019s Corner because Marie often talked about the bar\u2019s spaghetti night.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe loved to be around people, around music, and she loved to go out,\u201d Talian said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarie would always take my calls,\u201d Talian said, adding that Snowling would often check on her and pick up her groceries. \u201cThat\u2019s how I knew that something was wrong last night, when she didn\u2019t call back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Snowling was the perfect fit to manage the mobile home park, said Talian\u2019s daughter, Carol Franke.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first words out of her mouth are always, \u2018How are you?\u2019 or \u2018How are the kids?\u2019 She never talked about herself,\u201d Franke said. \u201cMarie celebrated other people\u2019s wins. That\u2019s just who she is.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Two<\/picture>\n
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John Snowling, right, and Ventura police partner Sam Arroyo on patrol at Ventura\u2019s Pacific View Mall in 2000.<\/div>\n
(Carlos Chavez \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Denise Craft, another neighbor in Orange, described Marie Snowling as nice and personable. Craft knew about Snowling\u2019s divorce and how her estranged husband had taken custody of their dog.<\/p>\n

Marie Snowling had recently confided in her that her that John Snowling was being very sweet lately, but she didn\u2019t know why.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told her to be cautious about that,\u201d Craft, 59, said.<\/p>\n

Geoffrey Kagy, 52, a regular at Cook\u2019s Corner, said his girlfriend, Jacqueline Bass, was at the bar without him Wednesday night \u2014 but around 7:30 p.m. she suddenly sent Kagy a volley of text messages. The first said \u201c911,\u201d followed by \u201cHelp\u201d and \u201cOmg.\u201d She\u2019d been inside Cook\u2019s Corner when the gunman opened fire.<\/p>\n

When they spoke by phone, Kagy said, \u201cshe just kept saying how she was running and that she saw somebody shoot.\u201d<\/p>\n

At about 7:07 pm Wednesday, a dispatcher on the radio channel for local California Highway Patrol troopers said: \u201cMale came in and started shooting. Eight shots were fired. White male. Plaid shirt and jeans. Still shooting. Possibly active shooter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Emergency dispatchers reported hearing gunshots in the background of radio traffic as multiple deputies arrived at the bar, Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock said at a late-night news conference Wednesday.<\/p>\n

In a video posted to Facebook by Betty Fruichantie, a friend of Marie Snowling\u2019s, first responders are seen putting victims on gurneys to be taken to the hospital. Fruichantie wrote that the gunman fired \u201c4 or 6 shots\u201d at her but missed.<\/p>\n

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\"Trabuco<\/picture><\/a><\/div>\n
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In the video, Fruichantie pans to a woman being wheeled away on a stretcher.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cOh my God, Marie,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Fruichantie mentioned in Facebook comments that she was sharing a table with Marie Snowling before the shooting and later learned that the gunman was her friend\u2019s estranged husband.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe shot her in the face,\u201d she wrote. \u201cThey transported her to the ER.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cook\u2019s Corner, which sits at the juncture of El Toro, Santiago Canyon and Live Oak Canyon roads near O\u2019Neill Regional Park, is a popular haunt among local riders who want to avoid freeway congestion and enjoy the winding route to get there, and it\u2019s become a spot where families gather for an inexpensive weeknight dinner.<\/p>\n

Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner said he was devastated by the shooting, and that it happened at an establishment that had become a cornerstone of the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear Cook\u2019s Corner, \u2018Oh it\u2019s a biker bar,\u2019 and in many ways it is. You go out there you\u2019ll see motorcycles galore \u2026 because it\u2019s really fun to ride your bikes out there,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cBut the truth is that it\u2019s a family spot.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be forever sad \u2014 there\u2019s no other word for it \u2014 that such a happy place will now go forward under the shadow of what happened last night,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Gus Gunderman, 60, stopped by Cook\u2019s Corner on Wednesday evening for a bite to eat and left just minutes before the shooting started. The bar was filled with patrons sipping beers as the band prepared for its set. On the patio, families sat devouring large plates of spaghetti and salad.<\/p>\n

Gunderman ordered a burger and a soda, not remembering it was all-you-can-eat spaghetti night. Looking back, he\u2019s grateful for that decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cHad I ordered spaghetti I would have gotten another plate or more salad, and then I would have been in the thick of it,\u201d Gunderman said. \u201cIt\u2019s a tragedy.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Orange County sheriff\u2019s deputies monitor the scene after the shooting.<\/div>\n
(Genaro Molina \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the four decades he\u2019s frequented the eatery, Gunderman said he\u2019d never once felt unsafe.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never even seen a fight there. This could have happened anywhere,\u201d he said. \u201cIt has nothing to do with motorcycles or motorcycle culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

News of the shooting brought concern from local officials and residents.<\/p>\n

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An aerial view of investigators on the scene at Cook\u2019s Corner.<\/div>\n
(Allen J. Schaben \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI\u2019m heartbroken by the news of yet another mass shooting tonight, this time at Cook\u2019s Corner, a historic bar in the heart of Orange County,\u201d state Sen. Dave Min (D-Irvine) said in a statement. \u201cMy heart breaks for the families and loved ones of the victims.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said he \u201cmourns for the victims of last night\u2019s horrific shooting.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also urged Californians to utilize the\u00a0state\u2019s red flag laws<\/a>, especially in instances of domestic disputes, which can temporarily remove firearms from someone who poses a threat to themselves or others.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must continue to strengthen, defend, and use these laws,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you see red flags, say something \u2014 and in doing so, save lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley echoed the governor\u2019s call for people to proactively respond to threats, stalking or domestic violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s disturbing to learn that another domestic dispute led to another mass shooting,\u201d Foley said. \u201cWe must do more to prevent senseless acts of gun violence and protect survivors.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Ventura<\/picture><\/a><\/div>\n
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CALIFORNIA<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cOur hearts weigh heavy with the distressing incident at Cook\u2019s Corner,\u201d Ventura Police Chief Darin Schindler said in a statement. \u201cOur deepest condolences are with the families of the victims, the survivors, [and] the Orange County deputies who swiftly responded to the scene.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ventura County Fire Capt. Brian McGrath said the Snowlings\u2019 son, Patrick, works for the department as a firefighter. \u201cWe are doing everything we can for him in his time of need,\u201d McGrath said.<\/p>\n

Spitzer said his heart was \u201cbroken into a million pieces for the people who know and love Cook\u2019s Corner … and for the people who were subjected to this unspeakable act of violence.\u201d<\/p>\n

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First responders attend to people at the shooting scene.<\/div>\n
(OnScene.tv)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

On Thursday morning, Erwin Lima stood outside the police tape blocking the two-lane road that leads to Cook\u2019s Corner. The Victorville resident has worked weekends detailing motorcycles at Cook\u2019s Corner for more than 15 years and drove there hoping to learn anything he could about the condition of his co-workers and friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t believe it when I started getting calls,\u201d said Lima, 54. \u201cMy body just shut down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marie Snowling frequented the bar most weekends for the live music, Lima said. Sometimes it would get so crowded that she\u2019d bring her own chair so she\u2019d have somewhere to sit.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverywhere now is shootings: schools, bars, church,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Only the police should have guns” (You ever notice that all the gun control laws the demoncraps want always exclude the police?) Ex-cop [he was retired] was gunning for estranged wife, then shot randomly, killing 3 and wounding 6 at O.C. bar A gunman who killed three people Wednesday night at a beloved local bar … Continue reading “”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,48,50,88],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-95443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-crap-for-brains","category-crime","category-goobermint","category-irony"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95443","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=95443"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95443\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":95444,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95443\/revisions\/95444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=95443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=95443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=95443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}