人兽性交

A 36-year-old software engineer who shot and killed a California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer last fall was bipolar and held antigovernment 鈥渟overeign citizen鈥� views, an investigation by the Contra Costa County Sheriff鈥檚 Office has concluded.

Christopher Lacy鈥檚 ideological ties to the , whose adherents generally believe they are immune to federal tax and many criminal laws, were documented with more than 100 interviews and search warrants. But the seven-month investigation failed to determine why he shot CHP Trooper Kenyon Youngstrom on Sept. 4.

The trooper was fatally shot at close range moments after stopping Lacy鈥檚 vehicle, which had an 鈥渙bstructed license plate鈥� as it traveled on busy Interstate 680 near Alamo, Calif., the sheriff鈥檚 office said in a just-released summary statement. That was only the latest murder of a law enforcement official during a traffic stop by a sovereign citizen, most of whom believe the government has no right to regulate their driving. On May 20, 2010, two West Memphis, Ark., police officers were slain by a father-son team of sovereigns during a routine traffic stop.

The FBI has publicly classified the sovereign citizens movement as "domestic terrorist" in nature.

In the California case, CHP Trooper Tyler Carlton, who responded as backup, shot and killed Lacy at the crime scene, resulting in the closure of both directions of travel on the busy Bay Area freeway for several hours. Last week, Carlton was honored as the nation's top trooper of the year by the International Association of Police Chiefs, who cited his extreme courage in his attempt to save Youngstrom's life and keep the public safe, in San Francisco reported.

As part of their investigation into the police shooting, Contra Costa County sheriff鈥檚 detectives searched Lacy鈥檚 trailer in Corning, Calif., about 200 miles from the shooting, where they seized six computers containing encrypted files.

鈥淚nvestigators found a large amount of literature on Libertarianism and the sovereign citizen movement,鈥� the sheriff鈥檚 office summary statement said.聽 Lacy, it added, 鈥渉ad strong views鈥� about gun rights and didn鈥檛 鈥渁gree with the role of government.鈥� 鈥淟acy downloaded literature on sovereign citizen [beliefs],鈥� Detective Sgt. Jose Beltran of the sheriff鈥檚 homicide squad said in the statement.聽 鈥淎lthough he never declared himself a 鈥榮overeign citizen,鈥� he certainly shared those viewpoints.鈥�

On Lacy鈥檚 computers, investigators found what they described as a 鈥渨ish list鈥� that included a reference to putting 鈥渕ud on [a] license plate,鈥� the statement said. Also on Lacy鈥檚 list were references to solar panels, water filters, sleeping bags and bulletproof vests. He also had visited a website describing how to make homemade explosives, it said.

In 2006, when stopped on his motorcycle by police in Sausalito, Calif., on suspicion of drunk driving, Lacy didn鈥檛 produce a driver鈥檚 license, but handed the officer a 鈥渂ill of rights鈥� card, the shooting investigation revealed. Sovereign citizens frequently refuse to get driver鈥檚 licenses, obtain required auto insurance or register their vehicles, sometimes even printing their own license plates. Most believe the government has no right to regulate travel 鈥渦pon the land.鈥�

While attending college in 1997, Lacy 鈥渨as believed to have suffered a breakdown鈥� and 鈥渨as diagnosed with bipolar disorder,鈥� but his 鈥渇amily believes he was misdiagnosed,鈥� the Contra Costa sheriff鈥檚 statement said without further elaboration. During a search of Lacy鈥檚 home, investigators found a handwritten suicide note believed to have been written during his college years.

In 2010, despite his apparent history of mental illness, Lacy legally purchased the handgun that he later used to fatally shoot the trooper. The sheriff鈥檚 investigation determined Lacy did not have a concealed weapons permit and had not registered his Jeep Wrangler since 2011.

In that same year, Lacy 鈥渟tarted to distance himself from his family and friends鈥� and became a 鈥渓oner who secluded himself,鈥� the statement said. While continuing to work temporary jobs in the Silicon Valley, he lived in his trailer in Corning and rented a room in Sunnyvale.

鈥淭here was no indication prior to the shooting that Christopher Lacy was going to kill or assault law enforcement officials,鈥� Beltran said. Although investigators now have a better picture of the killer, 鈥渋n the end, we will never know exactly why he killed Officer Youngstrom,鈥� the homicide supervisor added.