On a tragic afternoon in west Phoenix on February 21, 2018, the life of 26-year-old Vidal Hernandez-Gutierrez, a Hispanic man, was violently cut short. The deadly events began to unfold around 4:00 p.m. when police received a call from a woman stating her husband, Edward Hallinan, was firing a rifle at their home located near 35th Avenue and Thomas Road.
This initial act of violence was only the beginning of a grim series of events that would leave multiple people dead.
Responding officers spotted the 39-year-old suspect, Hallinan, driving a truck near the scene. After he parked the vehicle, a gunshot was heard from within the cab. As police ordered him to drop his weapon, Hallinan fired another shot. A 17-year veteran of the police force returned fire. Hallinan was subsequently taken to the hospital where he later died. It was later determined by the Maricopa County Medical Examiner that Hallinan's fatal wound was self-inflicted.
While the confrontation with Hallinan was unfolding, a police helicopter flying overhead made a horrific discovery in the yard of the residence next to Hallinan's. Three men lay with gunshot wounds. These men were identified as Vidal Hernandez-Gutierrez, Francisco Javier Galindo, who was 21, and 50-year-old Manuel Francisco Rodriguez Jimenez. All three were pronounced dead at the scene. It is believed that Hallinan shot his three neighbors before his encounter with the police. While the motive for the killings was not immediately clear, the incident left a lasting scar on the community, ending four lives in a sudden and violent outburst.
