During an argument in , her husband, Roel Tungcab, had broken her cell phone. Her tailbone struck the ground first. Then her head. She went unconscious. Roel and the officers who arrested and charged him that day with domestic violence-related crimes had something in common: They all wear badges for a living. That fact would become significant in the courtroom weeks later as Roel, a San Diego police officer, was being arraigned, and a judge was weighing the next steps.
The prosecutor had requested a full protective order, which would have barred Roel from coming within feet of Deborah or from contacting her remotely. But it never got that far. Months later, prosecutors dropped the assault, corporal injury and vandalism charges in exchange for Roel pleading guilty to one count of tampering with an electronic device — a property damage crime stemming from the broken cell phone.
He had been facing three years in prison but walked away with fines and an order to receive counseling. Twice in July, deputies concluded that the disputes between Deborah and Roel were not physical. Members of the Tungcab family either declined to be interviewed or did not respond to requests.
When reporters approached Roel outside his home in late July, he rolled up the window of his SUV and sat in silence. SDPD confirmed that in the years following his arrest and conviction, Tungcab would have likely responded to domestic violence-related calls like any other patrol officer. Hundreds of law enforcement officers over the last decade in California have been convicted of crimes. Many took plea deals that allowed them to stay on the force and keep their firearms. More than 80 are still working for police agencies.
Attorney General Xavier Becerra said it had been released by accident, and he asserted that merely possessing a copy was illegal. But the list was also missing several of the most high-profile cases over the last decade — at least 10 locally and more than across the state. Combined with the refusal of state officials to explain their methods of collecting information, the omissions on the POST list suggest that the state is not keeping a close eye on problem applicants and officers.
