Newsom urges more work to address gun violence in Half Moon Bay

Newsom spent time in Half Moon Bay Tuesday, meeting with families of those killed and meeting with law enforcement about the shooting of eight people in Half Moon Bay Monday. The governor noted there were 39 mass shootings in the United States this year, with 11 people killed at a dance studio in Monterey Park Jan. 21. Newsom said the state remained committed to leading on gun safety policy to save lives, demanding the Republican Party and federal government and judges do more to help California.

“We can’t do it alone and, with all due respect, we feel like we are,” Newsom said.

Newsom noted the common denominator and pattern was the guns, with America number one in the world in gun ownership and number one in gun-related deaths.

“Society becomes how we are allowed to behave,” Newsom said. “We have allowed this to happen. It doesn’t have to be this way. It wasn’t always this way.”

Chunli Zhao, a 67-year-old Half Moon Bay resident, was arrested in his vehicle in the parking lot of the Sheriff’s Office Half Moon Bay Substation Monday afternoon after allegedly shooting eight people, killing seven, at two separate locations. Four people died at Mountain Mushroom Farm on the 12700 block of San Mateo Road, with a fifth person shot. Three people were shot and killed on the 2100 block of Cabrillo Highway South. The victims were six men and two women, and a mixture of people of Hispanic and Asian descent. San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus said the only known connection between Zhao and the people was they were co-workers. One of the victims shot was out of surgery as of Tuesday morning and in stable condition. The San Mateo County Coroner’s Office is still working on identifying the victims and next of kin. Because some of the victims were migrant workers, it represented a unique challenge in the family notification, Corpus said.

Zhao worked at the Mountain Mushroom Farm, the first shooting location. The motive appears to be work-related.

“All of the evidence we have points to this being an instance of workplace violence,” San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus said.

While there are relationship and workplace disagreements worldwide, Assemblymember Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, said it was only the United States where they far too often end in mass shootings. Berman said the state would do more to help the coast and the farmworker community. Berman extolled the special small-town feel of Half Moon Bay that made it a favorite part of his district.

“That sense of peace and tranquility here in Half Moon Bay and on the coastside was destroyed by senseless death, by a senseless mass shooting that should not have happened,” Berman said.

Half Moon Bay Vice Mayor Joaquin Jimenez noted the parking lot at 735 Main St. normally held the weighing of the annual Pumpkin Festival but now was sharing tragic news affecting the community. Jimenez said it was important to pay attention to the farmworker living conditions and mental health needs, a community he has long advocated for since joining the council. He urged people to think about farmworkers and their fear of returning to work.

“This incident has changed our history of Half Moon Bay,” Jimenez said. “We never thought it was going to happen in our beautiful coastal community, but it happened.”

Newsom said many of the substandard conditions the farmworkers were going through saw some living in shipping containers and getting $9 an hour, less than the minimum wage. San Mateo County Supervisor Ray Mueller said the county had moved around 30 to 40 people affected by the shooting to hotels who left their homes near the worksites because of the crime scene. They will remain there for the foreseeable future until they can return. Nonprofit partners are raising money for lost wages. Mueller was with the community Monday night in Half Moon Bay and saw shock and heartache but also love and community strength. Community members showed up with food and clothes, while faith and nonprofit leaders also came to comfort families and provide mental health services. Mueller encouraged people affected by the tragedy to reach out to community and county resources if they needed help or support.

“Government does the best it can to help people, but it’s neighbors who help people, and that’s what we’ve seen happen in Half Moon Bay for the last three weeks during the floods, and that’s what we see happen right now,” Mueller said.

Half Moon Bay resident Danny Velasquez was grabbing a drink at the Texaco gas station on the corner of San Mateo Road and Main Street when he heard around three gunshots, about half a mile east, which came from the mushroom farm. At first, he suspected it was kids lighting fireworks.

“Then I heard the sound a second time; oh ya, that’s a gun,” Velasquez said.

Shortly after that, swarms of police flew by as the news worsened. People in the community, friends and family called Valazquez as the news went around town that there was an active shooter.

“I was shocked. My first reaction was, alright, I got to get home,” Velasquez said.

Velasquez is hopeful the community will come together and be stronger for it.

“It’s a nice peaceful town, people come for vacations and tourists around here, and then this happens,” Velasquez said. “Think about it. There aren’t any murders out here. Next thing you know, you go from zero murder rate to seven in one day.

Corpus said the semi-automatic handgun used in the shooting was legally purchased and owned. Lt. Eamonn Allen with the Sheriff’s Office said there were no specific indicators that would lead law enforcement to believe he was capable of the shooting, and he was not known to the Sheriff’s Office.

San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said arraignment will be 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in Redwood City. The DA’s Office has not determined charges yet while it reviews all the information. Wagstaffe said Zhao gave several hours of statements to authorities but could not go into details other than it appears to be work related.

“We have never had one in this county of this many deaths at one time,” Wagstaffe said. “It’s a very hectic scene.”

Nicholas Mazzoni contributed to this report.