Norco '80

by Peter Houlahan

  For many, it would have been easier and far less painful not to revisit the events of Norco. But after years of just wanting to forget, most now felt it was more important that the story be told. I am grateful to all for their courage and candor. Most who spoke or corresponded with me are listed in the acknowledgments, but some wished not to be recognized. Very few individuals declined to be interviewed or participate in the making of this book.

  Anything in quotation marks is taken verbatim from publications, documents, recordings, transcripts, or dialogue reported directly to me in interviews. Dialogue based on the recollections of those involved appears without quotation marks. Radio communications are verbatim and expressed in italics. Some of the above was condensed and edited for flow and context, but never to alter meaning. In rare cases when one or more participants were no longer alive, I relied on secondhand accounts, but from as many sources and in as limited a way as possible.

  Any errors contained herein are unintentional, but entirely mine.

  REGARDING THE USE OF FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION TERMINOLOGY IN THIS book, much care, research, and consulting of experts was undertaken to accurately represent the weapons used in the Norco event. However, I made the decision in a few cases to use terminology consistent with common usage and used overwhelmingly by those involved, even if technically inaccurate. It should be clear to the reader in all cases what is being expressed.

  The following are terms used interchangeably along with their correct definition:

  •A bullet is the projectile fired from a gun. A round includes the bullet, shell casing, and gunpowder unit loaded into the gun. Here, as it was then, the term round may at times be used to indicate what is actually a bullet (e.g. “I just took a round in the shoulder”), but never the other way around.

  •A magazine is a container that holds multiple rounds under spring pressure for auto-feeding into the chamber of a firearm. A clip connects multiple rounds together into a single unit. As Guns & Ammo magazine explains it: Clips feed magazines. Magazines feed guns. Both banana clip and jungle clip are misnomers refering to what are really variations of high-capacity magazines. Everything used in Norco was a magazine but almost always refered to as a clip by those involved.

  •The term assault rifle has become a particularly politically charged term in recent years. No politics are intended by its use in this book. The traditional definition was limited to rifles capable of firing in fully automatic mode. However, some sources, including Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, have recently broadened the definition to include any rifle capable of firing in at least semiautomatic mode. Each were used in the Norco shootout. I have chosen to refer to both types as assault rifles to be consistent with the terminology used by law enforcement officers and investigators at the time. However, the capability of each specific weapon used is clearly differentiated in the text, and at no time do I refer to “semiautomatic” gunfire or weapons as “automatic.”

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS FOR their help and cooperation in the making of this book:

  A. J. Reynard, Andrew Delgado Monti, Bill Eldrich, Capt. C. Brandon Ford, Capt. Leland Boldt, Clayton Adams, Cynthia Lumley, D. J. McCarty, Dan Smetanka, Danielle Simson, Darrell Reed, Dave Madden, David Templeton, Dawn Stott, Doug Earnest, Dr. Charles Hille, Frank Girardot, Fred Chisholm, Fred Grutzmacher, Gary Hakala, Gary Keeter, Gerard Brooker, Herman Brown, Holly Wilkens, Howard Leslie, James and Olivia Houlahan, James Kirkland, James McPheron, James Richardson, Jeff Ourvan, Jennifer Lyons, Jerry Baker, John and Judy Houlahan, John Burden, John Plasencia, John View, Joseph Wambaugh, Julie Gilbert, Justice Jay Hanks, Kari Tesselaar, Kenneth McDaniels, Kevin Ruddy, Kurt Franklin, Larry Malmberg, Lt. Jacqueline Horton, Mary Evans, Melvin Bukiet, Mike Lenihan, Mike Watts, Mikel Linville, Nancy Bohl-Penrod, Paul Dillinger, Pete Kurylowicz, Phillip Gay, Robert Hellman, Robert Noe, Rolf Parkes, Rosie Miranda Johnson, Ross Dvorak, Sgt. Will Edwards, Shawn Kelley, Sheila Marten, Sheriff Cois Byrd, Shirlee Pigeon, Stacey Sanner, Steve Cunnison, Steve Harmon, Tom Mellana, William Crowe, William Edwards.

  California Office of the Attorney General, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, Riverside Sheriffs’ Association, West Redding Fire Department, Mark Twain Library, Ben Clark Training Center, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the FBI, California Highway Patrol.

  Thank you also to all who preferred not to be acknowledged here.

  © Olivia J. Houlahan

  PETER HOULAHAN is a freelance writer contributing to a wide range of publications. In his career as an emergency medical technician, he has written a number of articles related to his profession. He holds an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College. A native of Southern California, Houlahan now lives in Fairfield County, Connecticut. Find out more at www.peterhoulahan.com.

  Calvary Chapel ocean baptism, Corona Del Mar, circa 1973. (Los Angeles Times)

  Diagram of firefight at Fourth & Hamner made by deputy Glyn Bolasky. Bolasky started at position marked “red light” and progressed through those marked 1–5. (RSO)

  Riverside deputy Andy Delgado. (Andy Delgado)

  Riverside deputy Glyn Bolasky. (RPE)

  Deputy Chuck Hille holding Jim Evans Jr., with Mary Evans (LEFT). (RSA/RPE)

  Hostage Gary Hakala. (RPE)

  Mug shot of Manny Delgado from previous minor arrest. (Orange County Sheriff)

  Aerial photo of Security Pacific Bank, looking East down Fourth St. Deputy Glyn Bolasky’s vehicle is top left in roadway. (RSO)

  Green van used in the robbery. (RSO)

  Bellegrave & Dodd: CHP officer Doug Earnest bandaging wounded patrolman Bill Crowe. (RPE/Jim Edwards)

  Sketch showing position of shooters in yellow truck during the pursuit. (RSO)

  Deputy James Evans. (RSO)

  Deputy James McPheron (LEFT) and D. J. McCarty with ambush site model used in trial. (RPE)

  Yellow truck abandoned at washout site. (RSO)

  Washout, Baldy Notch Road. (RSO)

  Bullet holes in the windshield of A. J. Reynard’s 511 car. (RSO)

  Rolf Parkes (LEFT) & D. J. McCarty (CENTER) airlifted to Loma Linda University Medical Center. (San Bernardino Sun)

  George Smith under arrest. (RPE)

  Christopher Harven (San Bernardino Sun)

  George Smith in custody, Lytle Creek.

  Russell Harven, and a wounded (RPE)

  Damage to the roof of Andy Delgado’s vehicle from a .308-caliber bullet. (RSO)

  Thirty-two police vehicles were disabled or destroyed. Bolasky’s vehicle at Fourth & Hamner

  windshield of Jim Evans’s unit. (RSO)

  Russell Harven in courtroom. (RPE)

  Christopher Harven during jailhouse interview. (RPE)

  Smith with attorney Clayton Adams. (RPE)

  Smith and defense investigator Jeanne Painter. (San Bernardino Sun)