COP-KILLER MANHUNT FOCUSES ON BEAR MOUNTAIN

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SAM Magazine—Big Bear, Calif., Feb. 7, 2013—A fired police officer who threatened to bring "warfare" to the Los Angeles Police Department has killed three people, including two policemen, and launched a manhunt that led pursuers to his burned-out truck in the Bear Mountain ski area parking lot. The resort closed for the day Thursday in response to the potential threat.

Armed officers followed tracks leading away from the vehicle and also descended from the summit toward the vehicle in an attempt to apprehend the former officer, Christopher Dorner. Officers also went door to door at Bear Mountain searching for him. A SWAT team was providing added security to the community. Guests were urged to stay indoors, but many got in their cars and left.

Before he began his alleged killing spree, Dorner threatened to kill several police officers, whom he identified by name in an online posting. It is not known why he wound up at Bear Mountain; at one point, Dorner is said to have attempted to steal a boat to flee to Mexico. It may be only a coincidence that both Bear and nearby sister area Snow Summit were hosting Uniform Day, when law enforcement and military personnel receive discounted lift tickets.

Chris Riddle, vice president of marketing for Bear Mountain and Snow Summit Ski Resorts, said that Bear Mountain closed on Thursday due to the “volatile situation” at the resort—the county sheriff established a command center in the parking lot near the burned truck—but nearby sister area Snow Summit remained open. The sheriff's department gave the OK on Friday morning for both resorts to open for the day.

Dorner, a former Navy reservist who served a tour of duty in Bahrain in 2006-7, had several weapons, including an assault rifle, police said. His Navy service ended last Friday, when he retired as a lieutenant. He had earned two medals for marksmanship during his tenure.