Homicide investigations strain sheriff’s staff

Sheriff Vern Warnke, coming off one of the bloodiest weeks of his short time in office in Merced County, said the sudden uptick in street violence last week highlights the department’s need for more deputies.

Three people were shot and killed last week, including two on Sept. 25 in Winton.

“Our gang problem is getting worse, and we’re running out of bodies in our department,” Warnke said in an interview Sunday.

Jerman Gaspar, 21, was shot and killed just before 8 p.m. Sept. 25 in the area of Winton Way and Walnut Avenue. A 14-year-old boy was also shot during the same incident. He was taken to a Modesto hospital for treatment.

Hours earlier, around midnight, a man was gunned down in the 7300 block of Edyth Circle in Winton. Few details have been released, including the victim’s identity. Investigators were still trying to contact the man’s family over the weekend.

Deputies have said they believe the Edyth Circle slaying is gang-related.

Investigators have not said whether they believe there may be a connection between the two slayings on Sept. 25.

The first killing of last week was reported early Sept. 20 when Juan Reyes, 23, of Delhi was gunned down in front of his home in the 16000 block of Jeffrey Court in Delhi.

No arrests have been reported in those three cases.

The incident on the night of Sept. 25 brings the number of homicides this year in Merced County to 23.

Four people have been killed this year in Winton, including the two on Friday. Two others were shot and killed April 6 when people opened fire in the 6800 block of Walnut Avenue.

Citing a need to protect case work, there was little Warnke would say about the investigations into last week’s violence.

“There’s still so much our guys have to do on those cases; it would be premature to talk about it,” Warnke said.

However, when discussing the logistics of staffing the investigations, the sheriff was unrestrained.

“We’re waking people up in the middle of the night to work patrol so other people can work these gang shootings and still have coverage for patrol,” Warnke said. “We have bosses coming in to do grunt work – put up crime tape, take measurements – so the detectives can do their jobs.”

A variety of challenges have left the sheriff with 22 staffing vacancies.

The Sheriff’s Supervised Release Team, which normally oversees inmates released to probation under the terms of the Public Safety Realignment Act, were called in Friday night to help investigate the crime scene.

Sheriff’s deputies said the department has a problem not only hiring qualified candidates but it also struggles retaining experienced deputies, some of whom have left for better-paying positions in other agencies.

Warnke said he hopes the county comes to an agreement with the deputies that will allow his department to make attractive offers to new hires.

This story was originally published September 27, 2015 at 4:15 PM with the headline "Homicide investigations strain sheriff’s staff."