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Gilroy Garlic Festival shooter died of self-inflicted gunshot

By Danielle Haynes
Police said officers shot the gunman at the Gilroy Garlic Festival before he shot himself in the head. Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI
Police said officers shot the gunman at the Gilroy Garlic Festival before he shot himself in the head. Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI | License Photo

Aug. 2 (UPI) -- The man who opened fire at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in California killed himself with a self-inflicted gunshot, the Santa Clara Coroner's Office said Friday.

An autopsy of Santino William Legan revealed he died from a shot to the head after killing three people and injuring 16 others Sunday.

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Gilroy police Chief Scot Smithee said Nicole Lopez of the coroner's office ruled Legan's death a suicide.

"I do know that the suspect was hit multiple times by the rounds the officers fired, which put him down," Smithee said during a news conference. "It appears now, with that ruling on the cause and manner of death, that once he was down, he was able to get a round off and he shot himself. It sounds like that round was to the head."

Smithee said earlier in the week that officers responded within a minute of receiving reports about the shooting at the festival and put a stop to the attack. He said Legan also fired at officers.

"In my mind, it changes nothing," Smithee said. "The officers still got there fast ... they eliminated the threat. Whether he fired that final shot, in my mind, changes nothing."

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Police identified the dead as 6-year-old Stephen Romero, 13-year-old Keyla Salazar and 25-year-old Trevor Irby.

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