Darnell Calhoun: Deputy killed in line of duty was an expecting dad
Riverside County deputy Darnell Calhoun was a 30-year-old husband and an expecting father.
RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. – A deputy in Riverside County is dead after being shot Friday.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call in the 18500 block of Hilldale Lane in Lake Elsinore. The deputy, later identified as 30-year-old Darnell Calhoun, was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
One person was placed in custody after the shooting, RSO said.
According to Sheriff Chad Bianco, Calhoun responded to a child custody call around 4:20 p.m. After Calhoun arrived at the scene, a shootout ensued, ultimately killing the deputy.
Sheriff: Darnell Calhoun was the most good, wholesome man you could ever imagine
Sheriff Chad Bianco said slain Riverside County deputy Darnell Calhoun was “the most good, wholesome man you could ever imagine.”
Officials did not say what exactly led to the shooting.
Bianco said Calhoun joined the department on February 2022 after serving with the San Diego Police Department. Bianco said Calhoun was a husband, a son and was going to be a father.
“There is not one person with one negative to say about him,” Bianco said of Calhoun. “He was the most good, wholesome man you could ever imagine.”
Darnell Calhoun, right, next to Sheriff Chad Bianco. PHOTO: Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
After the news of Calhoun’s death was announced, law-enforcement departments in Southern California offered their condolences:
Los Angeles Police Department
Orange County Sheriff’s Office
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office
San Diego Police Department (Calhoun’s former department)
Ventura County Sheriff’s Office
Late Friday night, a procession was held to honor the deputy killed in the line of duty:
Darnell Calhoun: Procession underway for Riverside Co. deputy killed in Lake Elsinore
A procession is underway for Darnell Calhoun, the deputy shot and killed in line of duty in Lake Elsinore.
This violent incident comes just weeks after another Riverside County deputy was shot and killed by a suspect in Jurupa Valley. On the afternoon of Dec. 29, Deputy Isaiah Cordero was killed while attempting to conduct a traffic stop. The suspect who fired the shot, 44-year-old William Shae McKay, was later killed following a pursuit.
RELATED: Remembering Isaiah Cordero: Slain deputy laid to rest