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Domestic Battery Suspect
updated: Sep 03, 2012, 2:13 PM
Source: SBPD
Tomas Torrez, age 32, of Santa Barbara was arrested for felony domestic battery
and assault with a deadly weapon (hands & feet with force likely to produce
great bodily injury). The victim, a 24-year old woman, suffered multiple
lacerations, bruising, and swelling to her face as a result of the incident.
She was treated at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.
On August 30, 2012 at 11:45 p.m., Officer Kody Cardana was flagged down on 700
Chapala Street by a member of the security staff from the Wildcat Lounge at 15
W. Ortega Street. The Wildcat Lounge employee reported that a battery had just
occurred and that the female victim was on the ground and bleeding on the 00
block of W. Ortega Street. Officers Heather Clark, Gary Gaston, Craig Rullman,
and Beth Lazarus responded to assist. Officer Cardana located the victim, who
was bleeding profusely, and with Officer Clark rendered aid until firefighters
and paramedics responded. Officer Rullman located Torrez in City Lot 10 off of
600 Anacapa Street and took him into custody. Torrez was being detained by
three members of the Wildcat Lounge security staff who pursued him on foot to
that location.
Investigation revealed that earlier in the evening Torrez and the victim entered
the Wildcat Lounge as a couple, holding hands. Approximately ten minutes prior
to the incident they exited the nightclub and walked westbound on 00 W. Ortega
Street until the victim took a seat on the edge of a planter box at the
neighboring Volkswagen car dealership. Witnesses then saw Torrez kick the
victim on her head with his right foot, causing her to fall backward into the
planter. Torrez then struck the victim once on her head with his right fist. A
passerby attempted to intervene and was challenged by Torrez, however when
Torrez saw Wildcat Lounge security staff approaching he fled the scene. Torrez
ran through Paseo Nuevo Mall and out onto 700 State Street, where he got into a
taxi cab. When the taxi was stopped by the pursuing Wildcat Lounge staff,
Torrez exited the cab and continued to run into City Lot 10 where he was
apprehended.
The victim did not provide a statement to the investigating officers, which is
not uncommon in cases of domestic violence and other serious crimes where the
suspect and victim know each other. Nevertheless, in the course of his
investigation Officer Cardana was able to establish that Torrez and the victim
are cohabitants and have been involved in a long-term relationship. Officer
Cardana obtained an emergency protective order for the victim and served Torrez
with it. Officer Cardana booked Torrez into Santa Barbara County Jail on the
aforementioned felonies with a bail amount of $30,000.00. Additionally, Torrez
was booked into Jail on two outstanding felony warrants; one warrant was for
domestic battery, false imprisonment, intimidation of a witness, violation of a
court order, and vandalism with a bail amount of $20,000.00. The other warrant
was for violation of post-release (county-level) community supervision and
possession of a dangerous drug, with no bail.
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