Suicidal suspect had doused self in gasoline before intentionally ramming officer, ECPD reports
By Miriam Raftery
Photo, left: Two officers train guns on driver after Sergeant Maxwell was struck.
January 11, 2025 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police Department has released surveillance and body cam video from the officer-involved shooting outside ECPD headquarters on December 11 during preparations for a retirement ceremony. (Warning: graphic content.)
The video shows a Toyota Tundra SUV driven by Benjamin Grube, 24, a nonbinary person earlier identified as Andrea Grube, park and later drive onto a sidewalk and ram Sergeant Kevin Maxwell as he tried to run from the oncoming vehicle. He was thrown into the air before the vehicle struck a bush. The injured sergeant managed to grab his service revolver while still on his knees, ordering Grube to exit the vehicle.
A lieutenant nearby called for backup. Officer Evan Drescher arrived on the scene, shouting “Don’t move!” But Grube instead pulled forward, trying to run over Maxwell a second time even as both officers had guns trained on her.
Photo, right: Vehicle driven by Benjamin Grube strikes Sergeant Kevin Maxwell, who was thrown into the air before rising to his knees, gun drawn, ordering suspect to exit the vehicle.
Both Maxwell and Drescher fired their weapons, Maxwell through the windshield and Drescher through the driver’s side window. Maxwell jumps out of the path of the oncoming vehicle. Several shots can be heard on the audio from body cam footage (the earlier surveillance footage has no audio).
Officers pulled Grube from the vehicle and rendered medical aid, as did paramedics. Grube was transported to a hospital, where the suspect was pronounced dead.
“Grube was found to be soaked in gasoline and three gas cans were found in the truck,” captions on the video state. “During the follow-up investigation, Grube was found to have suicidal ideations and was anti-law enforcement.”
Sergeant Maxwell was transported to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries including a concussion, and was later released. No other officers or civilians were injured.
San Diego Police is conducting an investigation, as is customary for officer-involved shootings involving other local police agencies. The District Attorney’s office will review results of that investigation. El Cajon Police is also conducting an administrative review into the officers’ use of force involving discharge of their service guns.
Resources available for impacted customers at community resource centers
January 8, 2025 (San Diego) – This week marks the driest start to the rainy season in San Diego County in 174 years. As a result of these dry conditions and Santa Ana winds, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) continues to implement Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) in an effort to reduce wildfire risk and protect public safety.
As of tonight, 8,946 customers have power shut off. Another 69,155 are at risk of power shutoffs.The effort aims to prevent hellacious firestorms such as those currently ravaging L.A., as wind gusts up to 85 miles per hour are forecast to reach San Diego County soon.
Because of the extended wind forecast, customers may experience prolonged or more than one PSPS. An up-to-date list of impacted communities can be found at sdge.com/ready.
Available Resources for Impacted Customers
SDG&E is opening of Community Resource Centers in affected communities. These Centers are equipped with resources such as Wi-Fi and phone and medical device charging, and they will remain open for customers in need until conditions improve. A list of active Community Resource Center locations and their hours of operation can be found at sdge.com/ready.
SDG&E has also partnered with 211 San Diego and Orange County United Way (formerly 211 Orange County) to offer enhanced community resources during a PSPS. 211 is free, confidential and available to answer customer calls 24/7, in over 200 languages. Customers with hearing impairment can dial 211 or 711 and ask to be connected to 211 at 858-900-1211.
PSPS & Unplanned Outage Safety Tips
High winds and other weather conditions also have the potential to lead to unplanned outages throughout the region, which are separate from a PSPS. Customers are encouraged to visit SDG&E’s outage map at sdge.com/outages for unplanned outage details and expected restoration times.
- Customers should never approach damaged infrastructure or downed power lines and should instead report them by calling 911 or SGD&E’s call center at 1-800-411-7343.
- Generator Safety: While backup generators can be a valuable tool when a power outage occurs, using a generator incorrectly can be dangerous. Customers are encouraged to visit sdge.com/generator to find safety guidelines to help keep their family and home safe.
For ongoing updates about this PSPS, visit SDGEtoday.com or follow SDG&E’s X channel, @SDGE.
By Jessica Brodkin Webb
January 7, 2025 (El Cajon) --In 13 days, President-elect Donald Trump could potentially begin to make good on his campaign promise to pursue mass deportations of immigrants and refugees living in the United States.
“As President I will immediately end the migrant invasion of America," Trump said in a Sept, 2024 speech and although he has not released specific details of how he might direct such a plan at a federal level, community leaders stand divided on how best to respond at the local level.
Under current California law, state and municipal governments are barred from working in conjunction with federal law enforcement agencies to actively pursue deportation for anyone who has not committed a serious crime. That approach stands in direct opposition to Trump’s proposed plan to conduct mass immigrant deportations.
El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells, in a letter to the Calif. Attorney General, says he plans to propose that his city fully cooperate with federal immigration authorities. San Diego’s Board of Supervisors majority, by contrast, has urged county authorities not to turn over any immigrants to federal authorities, while the County Sheriff has said she will take the middle ground and follow state law, cooperating only when immigrants have committed serious crimes.
Besides posing a challenge for local elected officials who must decide how they will answer to conflicting state and federal guidelines, an element of murkiness also exists for prominent community members and social service agency heads who spend many hours each week working directly with refugees.
Photos by Miriam Raftery: Noori Barka and Dilkhwaz Ahmed, leaders of El Cajon nonprofits aiding immigrants and refugees, have contrasting views on deportations
For example, Chaldean Community Council Founder Noori Barka said he doesn’t like to see people enter the country illegally and supports Trump’s plan to deport immigrants and refugees.
According to the Chaldean Community Council website, the social service organization provides “essential resources and support to help Chaldean and Middle Eastern families build a new life in El Cajon.” For individuals and families who have legally entered the country, they offer assistance with job placement, healthcare coordination, legal guidance and educational assistance among other things.
“I am against any illegal immigration and generally support people coming in the right way. Come like we all came, as immigrants, in a legal way. We have to do the right thing. Come with a degree, a relative, with refugee status.” Barka said.
He believes established members of East County’s Chaldean community, one of the largest in the nation, “came through the legal way” and with vetted backgrounds. Young people with “something to offer” are an asset, he said, including those who are able to enter the country legally with an H1 (work) visa.
However, Barka is concerned that recent waves of immigrants have not been subject to any background investigation and could bring danger to the community.
“People who are coming now, we don’t know their backgrounds and it's scary because sometimes we get criminals. We have to have the right to protect our borders and we have to have the right to allow people who want to come to the county to ask permission, but after we do a background investigation,” Barka said.
Meanwhile, License to Freedom Executive Director Dilkhwaz Ahmed who works daily with domestic violence survivors said some victims arrive undocumented and turning them back around after a harrowing journey to safety puts them at extreme risk. Niche populations such as these, she said, need special and individual consideration outside an all-encompassing policy.
“They’ve traveled thousands of miles to come to a safe country. Sending back those women and children, we put them at risk and what are we going to say: we can’t protect them? This population really needs us to support them, to give them a safe place, get them documents to start as a new human being,” Ahmed said.
Photo, left
, a migrant encampment near Jacumba in San Diego County has drawn immigrants from around the world.
The legal process can take years, she explained, from connecting a newly arrived individual to an attorney, then helping them connect their situation with evidence of domestic violence.
“I have a client from Afghanistan, the Taliban killed her husband and it took her seven years to make it to the United States. She called me, scared she would be deported. Imagine what would happen if we send back this woman? What could happen to her? What is her destiny?” Ahmed asked.
The immigrant population she works with “came to the country for democracy, opportunity” and while License to Freedom doesn’t serve many undocumented individuals, there are some, Ahmed said. She wishes some of their cases could be reviewed from a different perspective.
Barka has a no-exceptions outlook on illegal immigration while Ahmed prefers to hear one’s story before deciding how to proceed, yet both rely on individual background information. In contrast, Trump’s plan— albeit lacking in granular details— emphasizes removing as many immigrants as possible regardless of their lived history—even DACA recipients or “Dreamers” brought to this country as children.
Photo, right, 2018 San Francisco rally for young immigrants brought here as children, Protected under DACA, they may now face deportation under the Trump administration
American Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Anthony Romero said, “President-elect Trump will soon have the full power of the U.S. government machinery at his disposal to target and displace immigrants at a scale our nation has never experienced,” prompting the question of where viewpoints like that of Barka, Ahmed or other leaders who parse individual stories from the larger immigrant invasion fit in with public policy.
In the end, Ahmed said, people need to find a sensible solution for immigration policy which she believes can only be attained when people with political differences are willing to sit through a calm conversation and find common ground.
“Deporting criminals? Yes. Why should they be here? But people who come to work and pay taxes, are good human beings and good citizens? We need to stop pointing fingers at each other, start to listen and come up with solutions. Both parties have to give some,” she concluded.
Source: SDG&E
January 6, 2025 (San Diego) – Due to extreme fire weather conditions and forecasted Santa Ana winds, San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) has notified 64,866 customers that it may have to turn off power to reduce wildfire risk as early as Tuesday. Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) are approved by state regulators as an important safety tool of last resort to mitigate fire risk during dangerous weather conditions.
This week marks the driest start to the rainy season in San Diego County in 174 years. As a result of these dry conditions and expected Santa Ana winds, the National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for parts of Orange and San Diego Counties beginning Tuesday evening through late Wednesday night. SDG&E’s meteorology team is closely monitoring weather conditions.
Power shutoffs are possible in the following areas:
- Alpine
- Barona Reservation
- Boulevard
- Campo
- Campo Reservation
- Capitan Grande Reservation
- Chula Vista
- Descanso
- East San Juan Cap
- El Cajon
- Escondido
- Fallbrook
- Jacumba
- Jamul
- Julian
- La Jolla Reservation
- La Mesa
- La Posta Reservation
- Lakeside
- Los Coyotes Reservation
- Manzanita Reservation
- Mesa Grande Reservation
- Pala
- Pala Reservation
- Pauma and Yuima Reservation
- Pauma Valley
- Pechanga Reservation
- Poway
- Ramona
- Ranchita
- Rancho Bernardo
- Rancho Santa Fe
- Rincon Reservation
- San Diego
- San Pasqual Reservation
- Santa Ysabel
- Santa Ysabel Reservation
- Santee
- Sycuan Reservation
- Valley Center
- Viejas Reservation
- Warner Springs
SDG&E has activated its Emergency Operations Center and staffed it with key personnel to monitor weather conditions throughout the duration of the event, especially the wind speeds in the high fire risk areas of the county.
If SDG&E implements a PSPS for public safety, it will open Community Resource Centers to support impacted customers.
Given the potential for extended power outages, SDG&E encourages customers to be prepared. Outage preparedness tips can be found at sdge.com/outage-center; safety guidelines for generator use can be found at sdge.com/generator.
Never approach a downed line; report it by calling 911 or SGD&E’s call center at 800-411-7343.
Real-time information about unplanned power outages can be found at www.sdge.com/outage.
Updates about this PSPS can be found at sdge.com/Ready and SDGEToday.com or by following SDG&E’s X channel, @SDGE.