Court records show police were so alarmed by the behavior of one of the gunmen who killed three people at the Islamic Center of San Diego that more than a year before the shooting, they obtained a gun violence restraining order against the teen, as his classmates and school administrators raised con cerns he was idolizing mass shooters and threatening violence. Chula Vista police requested the gun violence restraining order against Caleb Vazquez back in January 2025. In the petition, a detective wrote that the teen had come to school dressed as the character “Dexter,” a serial killer in the television show by that same name. “For a high school student already exhibiting concerning behaviors and comments idolizing mass shooters, this act could be interpreted as an alarming indicator of deeper psychological concerns or a potential fixation on violent or dangerous ideologies,” police wrote, adding that the teen had also “made comments about wanting to experience a ‘day of retribution’” and expressed fascination with mass shootings and attacks. The behavior rose to law enforcement’s attention when two students reported to High Tech High Chula Vista’s assistant principal that Vazquez had told one of them not to attend school the following day, making the student concerned for his safety. The assistant principal – already familiar with the teen – reported it to police, and during a welfare check at Vazquez’s home, officers said his father was uncooperative with the officer’s request to check the storage of firearms in the home. Police said the assistant principal told them the school had already conducted multiple threat assessments on the teen, showing screenshots of social media posts idolizing mass shooters like the perpetrators of the 2011 mass shooting in Norway and the 2019 mass shooting at a WalMart in El Paso, Texas. His “apparent admiration for these figures and incidents suggests a fixation on violence and extremist ideologies, which raises concerns about his mindset, potential for radicalization, and the possibility of harm to himself or others,” police wrote. “This behavior further signals a need for intervention to address these alarming tendencies before they escalate.” Chula Vista police said the teen was then placed in a 72-hour psychiatric hold for a mental health evaluation. A judge granted the request for a restraining order through a March hearing, in which the order was dismissed. A separate court filing shows that around the time that restraining order was filed, the gunman’s father removed 26 weapons and ammunition from their home as a precaution, putting the teen in therapy and under more intense supervision. 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The teens then fled and fired on a landscaper a few blocks away before turning the gun on themselves, leaving behind writings that the FBI said were filled with extremist views and hatred of many groups. “It’s unbelievably infuriating to know that they actually knew about these shooters, they knew about the threats that they posed, they knew about their mental health issues, and yet weren’t able to protect the communities that were targeted by them,” said Khalid Alexander, a friend of the three men killed and founder of nonprofit organization Pillars of the Community. “Responding to the violence after it happens doesn’t help anybody,” Alexander continued. “We need them to have a proactive approach to hate. We need to have a proactive approach to preventing the violence that, you know, not only impacts the Muslim community but threatens to impact all communities in San Diego. As long as we are not safe, who is?” His sentiment was shared by mourners who gathered at the Islamic Center of San Diego to pay their respects to the victims on Tuesday afternoon, more than a week after the shooting. “Somebody’s dad didn’t come home. You know, some of these kids are living with that heartbreak,” said Camille Gooden, who lives in Chula Vista, but brings her daughter to attend a nearby school every day. “So just as a community member, it hurts. It breaks my heart.” “I think that there were a lot of missed opportunities and maybe not enough support,” Gooden – a school therapist – continued. “Maybe this might be a time to look at, you know, what other type of therapy or mental health supports we can put in place to support these kids that are identified as having these thoughts and are struggling with coping.” “These things do happen anywhere and everywhere,” said Kaseba Chibweth, of Bonita. “I hope this leads to maybe more conversations about internet safety. I think there are a lot things that are going undetected.” “It makes me question the preventative measures, what’s in place that’s also being ignored,” she continued. “I’m sure that there’s policies and procedures, and it just seems that a lot of things went to the wayside.” “I really do think that it goes back to how we talk about human beings and interacting with each other,” Chibweth added. “I think if we can just get back to a place where we can continue to humanize the human experience and bring back community, we can see a way forward where we can all coexist together.” “Very important conversations need to happen,” Alexander echoed. “But more importantly, people need to be ashamed to espouse any types of beliefs that will lead to the harm and violence that we saw last Monday.” This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser. ...read more read less