Faviola Del Real’s eyes could not hide the pain as she spoke.
The partner of Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s officer tragically gunned down by Steven Carrillo in June 2020, sobbed while reading her gut-wrenching statement before Carrillo and a packed courtroom attending his sentencing last week.
She told of how in the immediate aftermath the couple’s then-2-year-old son, Carter, would constantly ask the widow, eight months pregnant with their daughter, when daddy was coming home from work.
Gutzwiller’s death, only the second ever involving a county sheriff, perpetrated by a former military member intent on killing law enforcement officers, rocked this small, close-knit community.
But the situation was made all the more painful for a grieving law enforcement world based on what else it knew: Because of a little-known legal technicality, Gutzwiller’s just-blossoming family hasn’t been receiving vital financial support.
According to what critics termed an “antiquated law,” because Gutzwiller and Del Real were not married, Carter and his sister could not receive financial benefits from the state.
“A few outdated words were creating an extra gut punch to this family,” said retired officer Mike Pruger, an advocate who remains involved with issues like this one.
Pruger, Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart and others jumped into swift action. That included Hart’s daughter, Samantha, a local attorney who specializes in the legalese of trusts and estates.
A plea to state Sen. John Laird that a quick update to the state’s Special Death Benefit allowance was needed led to the drafting of Senate Bill 850. Laird helped usher it through the Senate and Assembly, and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it into law late Monday.
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