Robert Salonga and Malaika Fraley
Article Launched: 09/08/2008 01:43:08 PM

MARTINEZ — It was a tragic stroke of chance.

A blind, one-in-a-million shot killed Martinez police Sgt. Paul Starzyk on Saturday morning. The shooter, police say, stuck his hand through a crack in a door and fired his .38-caliber revolver twice, striking Starzyk as the officer prepared to enter an apartment where the man terrorized six people and killed one.

Starzyk, 47, was a former SWAT team leader known for his expertise during gunbattles, said Martinez police Chief Tom Simonetti.

Starzyk had spent the past few years teaching officers how to maneuver in "active shooter" situations, in which an officer tactically navigates a building while pursuing an armed suspect.

On Monday, the city continued to mourn the loss of an officer in the line of duty — something it hasn't experienced in 35 years. A memorial fund was set up for Starzyk's family and a candlelight vigil was planned in memory of the shooting victims.

Meanwhile, a tumultuous picture emerged regarding the relationship between 49-year-old shooter Felix Sandoval Jr. and his wife, Margarita, who was the intended target of the attack that killed her cousin Catalina Torres, 44, a teacher and advocate for domestic-abuse victims.

An autopsy found that a gunshot wound to the chest killed Starzyk, a 12-year department veteran. Simonetti said the fatal bullet struck a spot below Starzyk's neck, above the plating of his bulletproof vest. Another bullet struck the Kevlar-lined shoulder strap on his vest. Torres died from a gunshot wound to the face.

Simonetti added that Starzyk fired the bullet — from his Colt AR-15 semi-automatic rifle — that fatally wounded Felix Sandoval, who was shot again by an officer when he continued to point his gun at officers and a police dog.

Torres, an Alhambra High School graduate, was remembered warmly Monday by relatives and her Diablo Valley College students and colleagues, who established a scholarship fund in her name. In addition to being a DVC and St. Mary's College graduate, Torres raised two sons, supporting herself much of time by working at the Elegant Hair Design salon, where the shooting occurred.

"She died as she lived — a hero," wrote Noah Torres, the youngest of Torres' five siblings, in an e-mail.

Simonetti hired Starzyk as a reserve officer in 1992. He recalled Starzyk telling him that part of his inspiration for shifting from a career in banking to one in law enforcement came from his work at a Pittsburg soup kitchen. Starzyk found himself serving criminals who had come to eat the free food and prey on other kitchen patrons, Simonetti said.

"He realized some of the people he was helping weren't the most pleasant people, and thought he could help people in another way," Simonetti said.

Starzyk, an Antioch resident, is survived by his wife, Shannon, a Contra Costa County sheriff's deputy; two sons, Vincent, 6, and Jacob, 4; and a 20-month-old daughter, Jessica.

Starzyk was one of the first responders to reports of a shooting at about 11:35 a.m. near the Elegant Hair Design salon on Pacheco Boulevard and Morello Avenue. Witnesses said Felix Sandoval entered the salon waving a gun and asking about Margarita, who had hidden in a salon restroom.

Felix Sandoval left the salon, and was confronted outside by his adult daughter, who tried to wrestle away the gun, police said. Sandoval walked upstairs to an apartment where Torres, two women and three children were. The children and one woman hid in a closet. Torres and the other woman hid in the kitchen between the stove and refrigerator, with Torres shielding the woman from sight.

When Felix Sandoval found Torres, he killed her. Starzyk and another officer were on the scene within minutes.

Court records show that Margarita Sandoval filed for divorce in August 2007, but the case was held up by issues involving their shared debt and properties, including two homes, the salon and the apartment complex where the shooting occurred. She also filed a restraining order against her husband, an order friends and relatives say he violated on several occasions.

In the restraining order, Margarita Sandoval testified she had lived in constant fear of her husband during their 25-year marriage, and that Felix Sandoval routinely threatened her and her three children while brandishing firearms.

One of the conditions of the restraining order was that Felix Sandoval could not have any guns. During one police call for violating the order, police said, officers confiscated ammunition from him. This was a sore point for several relatives at a police news conference Monday.

"How did he get a gun?" asked Silvia Torres-Limón, Catalina's sister. "Why is my sister dead?"

A longtime friend of Torres', Diana Hong, said Torres was tireless in her work for domestic-violence victims. She was a onetime victim who recovered and pursued a career in education.

"She was bold," Hong said. "I was afraid she stood up to him and that's why she got shot."

Staff writers Matthias Gafni and Lisa White contributed to this story. Reach Robert Salonga at 925-943-8013 or rsalonga@bayareanewsgroup.com. Reach Malaika Fraley at mfraley@bayareanewsgroup.com.