Deadly Shootout, Slain RivCo Deputy: 5 Things To Know

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A day after a deadly confrontation between a Riverside County sheriff's deputy and a career criminal ended in the deaths of both, the community is morning the public servant who "embodied our motto of service above self."

Deputy Isaiah Albert Cordero, 32, was killed at the hands of William Shae McKay, 44, according to Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

Here are five things we know about what happened before, during and after the shooting.

1.) It started with a traffic stop.

Around 2 p.m. Thursday, Cordero pulled McKay over for an unknown traffic violation in the 3900 block of Golden West Avenue, near Rathke Drive, in the city of Jurupa Valley.

"As (Cordero) approached the vehicle, the suspect produced a (handgun) and shot the deputy," the sheriff told reporters Thursday night.

A witness saw Cordero being shot, and called 911 immediately, according to Bianco. That person and others stayed with the deputy and "tried to help" the injured man until authorities arrived.

Information from the witnesses helped police with key information to start the "massive manhunt" for the driver of a black pickup truck— later identified as McKay.

Shortly after, McKay was spotted in San Bernardino County.

"We were looking for that vehicle and located it very quickly," Bianco said. "The suspect was located in San Bernardino, and there was a pursuit, which came back into Riverside County."

2.) McKay refused to go into custody willingly.

McKay, at the wheel of a black pickup truck, led officials on a pursuit on at least two freeways in the Riverside metropolitan area. Witnesses said that the gunman was waving at other motorists as he drove southbound on Interstate 15 with a phalanx of law enforcement vehicles from the sheriff's department and California Highway Patrol on his tail. Video of the chase showed a formation of dozens of police vehicles behind a SWAT vehicle trailing the truck.

The sheriff said that he himself was also involved in the pursuit.

The county's top lawman said that during the multi-agency chase, a spike strip was deployed on the Pomona (60) Freeway at Valley Way, and McKay ran over it, blowing out the pickup's two rear tires. However, the vehicle remained drivable, and the felon continued on, ultimately turning south on Interstate 15 in Eastvale. The rear axle eventually flew off the vehicle, and he crashed into the side of the 15 freeway near Fourth Street in Norco.

A SWAT vehicle pinned the truck to its spot, video footage showed. A shootout between the suspect and police immediately followed.

"He shot across the freeway and (crashed) .... The suspect started shooting at deputies, which prompted them to shoot back," Bianco said.

3.) The sheriff blames the criminal justice system.

Though McKay pulled the trigger, Bianco has pointed to the criminal justice system as the one that ultimately failed his 4,000-strong department.

"This terrible tragedy should have been prevented by the legal system," Bianco said at Thursday night's news conference. "McKay has an extensive, violent past and was convicted of his third strike in November of 2021."

According to Bianco, McKay was a "violent felon" whose criminal acts began in the 1990s. Bianco said the shooter should have been locked away under California's "three strikes" law.

The California Department of Corrections told Patch that McKay first entered the system in March 1999 for a three-year sentence related to an assault with a firearm. He also received a concurrent two-year sentence for second-degree burglary.

McKay was released on parole in March 2001 and discharged from parole in November 2005, the department said.

He was back in the system some five months later.

"McKay was once again received by CDCR in April 2006 from Los Angeles County with a 13-year sentence for first-degree robbery as a second-striker, and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon as a second-striker with an enhancement for a prior serious felony conviction," a statement from the CDCR said.

"He received 432 days in presentencing credits for time served while awaiting trial and 21 days in post-sentencing credits for time served while awaiting transfer to state prison. McKay was released to parole supervision in April 2016 after completing his sentence, and discharged from parole in May 2019," the agency said.

San Bernardino County court records show that in 2020, a woman filed for a temporary restraining order against McKay.

The Los Angeles Times reported a bevy of court records related to McKay's past misdeeds, including a conviction for wrongful imprisonment in 2021. In that case, he was found not guilty of kidnapping to commit robbery or rape.

McKay was out on bail awaiting sentencing for the wrongful imprisonment conviction when he killed Cordero.

The Times reported that Judge Cara D. Hutson delayed sentencing twice when a motion for a new trial was made.

"Instead of sentencing him to 25 years to life, which should have happened, the judge lowered his bail," Bianco said. "Allowing McKay to be released."

The Times reported that McKay's original bail was set at $950,000, but after the verdicts, "including his acquittal on kidnapping charges, Hutson reduced his bail to $500,000," the article states.

"We would not be here if the judge had done her job," Bianco said.

4.) 'Rest easy, deputy.'

Cordero started with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department on May 5, 2014 as a correctional deputy and previously worked at the Riverside and Indio jails. At the time of his death, he was assigned to the county's Jurupa Valley station.

Bianco described the deputy's current assignment on motorcycle patrol as the man's dream job. He had just started in that role in September.

He had "learned from his mother the value of serving and helping other," Bianco said, adding that Cordero's "goal from the day he was hired was to become a motor deputy."

"He was a jokester around the station, and all our deputies considered him their little brother," the sheriff said.

Cordero is survived by his mother, father and stepbrother. The fallen deputy was not married but was in a relationship, the sheriff said.

Fellow deputies shared a memo about Cordero, as released by the Los Angeles Times.

"Our fallen hero just graduated from motor school a few months ago. He was shot and murdered on a traffic stop. ... [The suspect] fled but was observed by an off-duty officer who communicated his location. A pursuit ensued," and the suspect was killed. The message closed with, "Rest easy, deputy."

Funeral arrangements are pending.

5.) What's next?

The sheriff said the department would be reviewing Cordero's body camera footage and have "more answers" related to what transpired between the lawman and gunman prior to the shooting.

Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered state flags to be flown at half-staff in Cordero's honor and said Cordero "served his community selflessly, and with dedication and courage. We owe him our respect, gratitude and will remember his sacrifice.”

Assemblyman Bill Essayli, R-Corona, vowed to pursue changes to state laws that may have indirectly led to Cordero's death.

"Words cannot describe my outrage following today's tragic deadly shooting of Riverside County Sheriff's Deputy Isaiah Cordero," Essayli said. "We must do more than mourn; we must take an honest look at how our laws, and their enforcement, led to today's tragedy. What makes this line of duty death beyond tragic is that it was completely avoidable: the perpetrator was on his third felony strike as of 2021, but instead of 25 years-to-life in prison, a San Bernardino judge had the discretion to give this career criminal a reduced bail and released him on our streets.

"I am committed to fixing our laws so violent career criminals like the one who murdered Deputy Cordero are not allowed back on our streets to terrorize our communities."

SEE ALSO: 'Deeply Heartbroken': Sheriff Remembers Slain RivCo Deputy