The Marin County Sheriff’s Office arrested two Cotati residents after a young Black man in Marin City was shot at 1:00 pm on Tuesday, the law enforcement agency announced Wednesday morning. The suspects, Isaac Quixote Rangel, 18, and Jasmine Ciara Medeiros, 18, were booked into the Marin County Jail several hours after the shooting.
Rangel is currently being held on $500,000 bail and was charged with attempted murder and carrying a concealed weapon. Medeiros was charged with being an accessory.
The suspects went to Marin City to look at an item for sale. A struggle ensued and Rangel, a passenger in the vehicle, allegedly shot a firearm and hit the victim, according to a statement released by the Marin County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday morning.
After witnesses provided Sheriff’s deputies with a description of the vehicle and its occupants, the agency issued a countywide “be on the lookout” order. The car was spotted on northbound Highway 101 near Freitas Parkway at around 1:10 pm by a San Rafael police sergeant. He followed the vehicle while waiting for back-up units.
The Sheriff’s Office and California Highway Patrol made a traffic stop in Petaluma and detained Rangel and Medeiros, according to the Sheriff’s statement.
Deputies discovered a .40 caliber gun on the side of 101 near Marin City.
Witnesses Amber Allen Peirson and Paul Austin were celebrating Election Day with friends at 100 Drake Avenue in Marin City when they heard the gunfire a block away. A black car with multiple occupants immediately left the scene of the shooting, they told the Pacific Sun on Tuesday.
The victim, who is approximately 19 to 20 years old, was taken into surgery after being transported to a local hospital, the two witnesses said. He is currently in stable condition, according to the Sheriff’s Wednesday morning statement.
After Peirson heard the shots ring out, she ran to the victim and spoke with him while he lay on the ground. Two nurses nearby also quickly responded to help the victim until Marin County Sheriff’s deputies arrived and began providing medical treatment. Medical and fire crews also responded and the victim was transported by ambulance to a local hospital.
Deputies interviewed Peirson, Austin and other witnesses. A short time later, Peirson, Austin and two other witnesses were brought to Petaluma to identify the suspects and their vehicle. said.
Though the shooting occurred just two days after approximately 1,000 Trump supporters gathered in Marin City, the only community in Marin County with a large Black community, the Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday afternoon that it had “no information to believe the shooting is associated with the event.”
In an interview on Tuesday afternoon before the Sheriff’s Office released information about the suspects, Peirson said she was concerned that the rally may have thrust Marin City into the spotlight.
“In some ways, I think it is related to the Trump rally,” she said. “Marin City received national attention and I think it activated people to come here. My big fear is more people will come.”
Tensions were certainly high during the event on Sunday. Trump supporters yelled racial epithets and curse words at Marin City residents. The rally vehicles were pelted with eggs and shot with paintballs, Schneider, the Sheriff’s spokesperson told the Pacific Sun on Sunday.
Marin City residents were not alerted that the rally was going to take place in their neighborhood and many are still reeling from its effects on the small community.
“There is a heightened level of anxiety from Sunday,” Austin said.
The Sheriff’s Office received 911 calls about physical altercations; however, law enforcement didn’t observe any physical fights, and no victims have come forward, Schneider said.
In a statement released on Tuesday morning, Marin County officials condemned the “Trump Train” event, which they say featured “race-based hate speech and acts of blatant intimidation.”
In its statement on Wednesday, the Marin County Sheriff’s Office thanked the witnesses that came forward with accurate and timely information that led to the arrests.
“The police did a good job,” Peirson said. “Multiple officers came. They listened, they were calm and they let people be angry and have their emotions. They engaged.”
