California DOJ declines charges in 2023 Glenn County CHP shooting, recommends training reforms

California’s Department of Justice said Tuesday it will not file criminal charges against a California Highway Patrol officer in the 2023 fatal shooting of Jesus Guzman Jr. in Glenn County, while also urging the CHP to make five training changes in a report released under a state law requiring independent review of certain police shootings.

The report, released Nov. 3 by Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office, examined the April 29, 2023, shooting near Interstate 5 and County Road 33 in an almond orchard north of Artois. According to the report, CHP Officer Steven Bryant saw Guzman driving about 88 mph and tried to stop him, leading to a short vehicle pursuit. Guzman’s vehicle then appeared to suffer a mechanical problem and stopped, and Guzman ran into the orchard. The report said Bryant chased him on foot for about two minutes over nearly 300 yards. A struggle followed, during which Guzman punched Bryant, gained control of the officer’s TASER and pointed it at him, the report said. Bryant then fired six rounds, fatally wounding Guzman, who was pronounced dead at the scene at about 10:06 a.m.

The Justice Department said the evidence was insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Bryant acted unlawfully rather than in self-defense or defense of others. In plain terms, the report concluded prosecutors could not show beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer fired without the intent to defend himself or others from what he reasonably believed was imminent death or serious bodily injury. Because of that, the department said it would not pursue criminal charges.

At the same time, the report recommended that CHP strengthen training in five areas: when officers should initiate a foot pursuit, when they should disengage from one, when they should wait for backup before making a high-risk traffic stop, how to use operational safety tactics such as time, distance and cover when restraining a noncompliant person, and how to use a TASER effectively.

The report also underscored the limits of the evidence. The foot pursuit and struggle happened outside the view of a dash camera, the Justice Department said, and there were no independent eyewitnesses to the shooting itself. Bryant was not wearing a body-worn camera at the time, so there was no body-camera footage of the encounter. Even so, the report said physical evidence supported that a struggle occurred, including a discharged TASER recovered at the scene.

The review was conducted under AB 1506, a California law that requires the state Department of Justice to investigate officer-involved shootings that kill an unarmed civilian and decide whether criminal charges are warranted. Those reports can also include policy or training recommendations, as this one did. “We hope that this report provides clarity to the community and those personally affected,” Bonta said in a DOJ news release.

The report also noted that CHP later changed its policy on body-worn cameras. Effective April 29, 2025, the agency began requiring sworn enforcement employees to be equipped with body-worn cameras during their shifts.