Anonymous
Sheriff’s Office Confirms Identities in Hope Ranch Incident
At 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call at the home of actor Ron Ely. Upon arrival, deputies contacted Ron Ely and discovered his wife, Valerie Lundeen Ely, 62, deceased with multiple stab wounds inside the home. While on scene, deputies identified the suspect as the Elys’ son, 30-year-old Cameron Ely.
Deputies searched the residence and surrounding area for Cameron Ely. During the search, the suspect was located outside the home. He posed a threat and in response 4 deputies fired their service weapons at the suspect, fatally wounding him. No deputies were injured during the confrontation with the suspect.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is conducting criminal, coroner’s, and administrative investigations of this incident. Autopsies of both the victim and the suspect are pending. The names of the involved deputies will be released at a later date.
Update by edhat staff
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Deputies have shot and killed a suspect believed to have killed a Hope Ranch woman in the home of former “Tarzan’ actor Ron Ely Tuesday evening.
The woman who was murdered is believed to be Ely’s wife since 1984, former Miss Florida Valerie Lundeen, although police have not confirmed the identity of the victim. Together they have three children, Kirsten, Kaitland, and Cameron. Ely, 81, is believed to be safe and recovering at a local hospital.
The suspect’s identity has yet to be released and it is not yet known how the suspect is connected to the residents.
Ely played a range of television roles in the 1960s but was best known for “Tarzan,” which aired from 1966 to 1968. He also had recurring or guest roles in notable shows such as “The Love Boat,” “Wonder Woman,” and a revival of “Sea Hunt” in the 1980s. He hosted the Miss America pageant in 1980 and 1981 before retiring from acting in 2001.
Update by Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff’s Office Discovers Apparent Homicide in Hope Ranch Home -Suspect Fatally Wounded in Confrontation with Deputies
At 8:15 PM on Tuesday, October 15, 2019, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office – Public Safety Dispatch Center received a 9-1-1 call reporting a family disturbance at 4141 Mariposa Dr. in Hope Ranch, CA. Deputies responded to the residence and discovered a female deceased inside the home, the victim of an apparent homicide. A disabled elderly male resident of the home was also located and transported to an area hospital for evaluation.
Deputies immediately searched the home and secured a perimeter of the surrounding area. A shelter-in-place alert was sent to area residents advising them to remain in their homes as deputies searched for the homicide suspect. During the search, deputies located the suspect on the property of the homicide. Deputies attempted to gain verbal control of the suspect, however he presented a threat to them. In defense of the threat posed by the suspect, several deputies fired their service weapons at the suspect, fatally wounding him. No deputies were injured during the confrontation with the suspect.
The Sheriff’s Office is conducting a criminal investigation into the homicide, processing the crime scene and working to identify the relationships of the persons involved in the incident. The deputies involved in the shooting will be placed on paid administrative leave, which is routine following any officer involved shooting.
No additional information is available for release at this time, as this is an active and ongoing criminal investigation. The Sheriff’s Office will release additional information as it becomes available.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Deputies are searching the Hope Ranch area for a homicide suspect after a woman was found dead.
Deputies responded to the 4100 block of Mariposa Drive Tuesday after 8:00 p.m. for a reported domestic dispute. Upon arrival they discovered a woman’s body inside the residence.
Residents in the area were asked to shelter in place as Deputies searched for the suspect.
Further details have not been released at this time. Any additional information will be added to this article.
Did anyone else receive a shelter in place alert in Hope Ranch? My mom just texted and said she received an alert to stay inside as police look for a suspect. Any information? She’s near Estrella Drive and Mariposa.
Noozhawk reports that law enforcement know who the suspect is and that LE considers it a “family situation.” I.e., a domestic affair and that others aren’t in danger. Keep Fido close and keep those doors and windows locked, just in case.
RUMOR going around that the suspect who shot his wife was a retired actor, who I won’t name. I stress RUMOR.
I do and looks like I was right. Thanks for your comments.
I agree with the commenter who thinks 62 hardly sounds “elderly”. Not even old enough to retire and collect Social Security’s full benefits. My friends in their 90s and into 100’s could be “elderly”.
Unless I missed something, the only “elderly” reference was to Ron Ely, who at 81 I think can be referred to as elderly. Although that may offend some 81 year olds, so sorry.
Roger are you saying there is a history of domestic violence or domestic disturbance calls at this house? Perhaps it’s their son who is the suspect.
@8:08, Roger also commented on Facebook there is a history of 415’s (domestic disturbances) AND medical emergencies at this house. Check yo’self before ya wreck o’self.
And good-looking!
i agree and that’s one of the first thoughts i had. so now this man lost his son and wife. they didn’t need to empty their clips into him. he had a knife.
Alex, i’ve been shooting (bows and guns) for a long time. i could easily nail you in the hand at a distance with a revolver. it’s not that difficult. with training.
ZERO – did “they say” there was 50 cops there? Did “they say” he only had a knife and there were no other circumstances that led to this? Nope, “they” did not say that. BIGUGLY did though. That’s why I said what I said.
Everyone is an expert until they are in a life and death situation.
It’s a sad story. It’s terrible that he killled his mother. I don’t think he should have been killed by police.
Big ugly- look up the 21 foot rule- a person with s knife can get tons cop before the gun can be drawn if he’s within 21’. This was suicide by cop
Zero- sure you could. Anyone who’s good with pistols would never say something so naive. You’d shoot the mince out of his hand? Why do people’s hearts bleed for someone who just committed matricide against a 65yo woman? Cop’s number one job is to go home to his family.
You’re not very familiar with firearms if you use the word “clip” in this case. None of the rifles, shotguns, or handguns in use by local law enforcement are clip fed. The word is “magazine”. It is also fantasy to say you can hit someone’s moving hand in the dark, let alone a stationary hand in broad daylight, with any handgun.
Highly recommend those who think cops should tase or shoot to wound watch some videos on the Police Activity YouTube channel for a reality check.
They need to release the bodycam footage. They are not even claiming that he had a knife. They’re saying he “presented a threat”— to four armed men purportedly trained to deescalate a situation.
Is 30 years old a kid if they are not your son or daughter?
I think “elderly” is relative to state of mind and physical health. When I see a person walking w/a shuffling gait and stooped over they look old to me. These days I think there is definitely young old age, middle old age and finally, “elderly” – a quaint term that is meant to be gentle and respectful. My baby boom generation is mostly doing a good job of trying to stay (at least) young at heart or in some cases are in complete denial 🙂
On December 26, 1982 my high school boyfriend killed his mother then his sister. He came to my house to kill me as he did not want me around knowing what was in his future. Thank God I was not home and my life turned a wonderful corner. I know from that experience that what is posted in the media is not accurate. I was in the middle of that horror story and knew all the facts. It took years for me to get over that. I still fear for my life if that person ever gets out of jail. He promised to come find me. Something is really wrong with a boy/man who kills his mother. Please do not judge the police. You were not there. This is from someone who has experienced the same trauma.
Cops puling out guns and fatally shooting a man with a knife! Aren’t they trained to hit the leg or foot, essentially stopping the suspect rather than killing him? UGH! Trigger happy thugs. There was probably about 50 of them too.
There are training videos out there that cops see where a cop is killed with a pen and also a bricklayer’s trowel. Once you see these, you will be less likely to think a knife is not a lethal weapon too. Cops are trained to aim for the center of mass as that is the biggest target. They are more likely to hit this target in a stressful situation where the adrenalin is surging and their hands are shaking. Thinking that a cop is trained to “wing” someone in a situation that looks like life or death to them is just wishful thinking. If you think you can do a better job, please sign up.
BIGUGLY – were you there? No.
There are very few people who could successfully shoot to wound, rather than shoot to stop.
You seriously think that you could hit someone coming at you with a knife in the arm? You can’t. That’s pure movie fantasy.
Really sorry for everyone involved, including the police officers who had to take a life.
This is for all the people bad mouthing the police. Think about this, Cameron stabbed his mother not once, not twice, but multiple times. He did not have a reality check after the 1st stab. He kept stabbing her. That is hateful, sick, Rage! Do you want your hard earned money to support him in Prison? People come out of prison worse than when they went in. If whatever disagreement he had with his mother, if he had displayed self control he would have just walked away. Then 2 people would still be alive. My heart grieves for Ron and his 2 daughters that have lost 2 family members. If you think you could do better than those officers, go apply to be an officer.
People defending cops shooting and killing people should watch the video of Aaron Dean murdering Atatiana Jefferson.