Man Shot While Patrolling With Game Warden

A Somis man accompanying a state Fish and Game warden on patrol was shot in the chest after apparently being mistaken for a coyote, authorities said Monday.

Thomas Gregory Frost, 21, who had left the patrol car when the warden got out to investigate gunfire Sunday night, was hit by a single bullet from a .22-caliber rifle, authorities said. He was in serious but stable condition at Ventura County Medical Center.

Chris Parmenter, an 18-year-old Camarillo man, told police he was target shooting in the woods and became frightened by coyote howls, prompting him to fire in Frost’s direction, sheriff’s officials said.

Parmenter was in Ventura County Jail on suspicion of negligently discharging a firearm. Bail was $5,000.

Meanwhile, state Department of Fish and Game officials were investigating whether Matthew Galli, the warden who took Frost on the ride-along, had acted to prevent Frost from getting involved.

Department officials, who said they take civilians on hundreds of rides a year, called the shooting rare.

“In the 15 years I’ve been here, it hasn’t happened,” said department spokesman Pat Moore.

Sheriff’s officials and Frost’s relatives gave the following account:

Galli is a friend of the Frost family, and Frost hopes to work in law enforcement. Galli, who is stationed in Ventura and has been a warden for about a year, offered to take Frost on patrol Sunday night.

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The pair were riding on Potrero Road, about two miles east of the former Camarillo State Hospital, when they heard several rifle shots about 8:45 p.m. They left the car and were walking along a path in the woods toward the noise when a bullet struck Frost, who collapsed.

Galli radioed the Sheriff’s Department for help. A sheriff’s helicopter landed soon after, and Frost was flown to the hospital.

“It missed the heart,” said Frost’s older brother, Jim. “He’s very lucky.”

Meanwhile, Parmenter and two youths walked out of the woods and surrendered. Parmenter said he and the two boys, who were not arrested, had been target shooting but became scared.

“He was out plinking,” Sheriff’s Capt. Keith Parks said. “People go out into the woods to shoot all the time.”

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Parmenter told investigators “they thought they heard coyotes in the brush coming toward them,” Parks said. Parmenter said he did not know it was two men approaching, Parks said.

But “when you have a firearm, you’re responsible for it,” Parks added. “You don’t just fire into the brush.”

Fish and Game officials provided few details but said Galli was ordered to write a report on the incident and he remains on active duty.

Officials with the Sheriff’s Department and several other county law enforcement agencies said before civilians go on ride-alongs, officers take numerous steps to ensure their safety--such as telling them to stay in the car at all times.

In addition, law enforcement agencies typically require civilians to sign a waiver releasing the department from civil liability if an injury occurs.

Moore, the Fish and Game spokesman, said he does not know whether the department requires liability waivers or if Galli told Frost to stay in the car.

Mike McBride, the chief of the department’s Southern California coastal region, declined to say if Galli acted properly.

“I have no reports, and I’m making no conjecture at this time,” McBride said.

Civilian rides with game wardens must be approved by department administrators.

Moore said the ride-along request form “doesn’t seem to indicate wardens are instructed to tell them anything. As long as a person’s presence doesn’t interfere with the job,” the ride-along is likely to be approved, he said.

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Jim Frost said the family does not blame Galli, whom they have known for about three months.

“He’s a buddy of ours,” Frost said.

“This is the first time my brother has gone out with Fish and Game,” he added. “He wants to be a police officer.”

Mary Frost said her son told her Monday that he was aware of the danger. He believed classes he has taken in police work at Ventura College prepared him to help Galli investigate, she said.

The mother said she’d had a sleepless night, but was encouraged her son was recovering.

“This is a kid full of life,” she said. “If you have a daughter, he’s the kind of boy you want walking her to the prom.”

Jim Frost described the family as hunters and lovers of the outdoors. The two brothers work for an uncle, Robert Frost, who owns a local ranch, relatives said.

“He’s doing real well,” Jim Frost said. “A little bit drugged up, but he’ll be all right. It was just a stupid accident.”