Authorities Tuesday publicly identified a Navy man who was fatally shot by an unknown assailant last weekend in an Eastlake-area neighborhood.
Patrol personnel responding to reports of gunfire found Ramone Joseph, 36, mortally wounded in the 1800 block of Marquette Road in Chula Vista about 12:30 a.m. Saturday, according to police.
Paramedics took Joseph to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police identified Joseph as a member of the military but did not specify in which branch he served. But the Navy told Times of San Diego that Ramone Paul Joseph was from Louisiana and enlisted in August 2004.
About 20 minutes after the shooting occurred, officers spotted a vehicle matching the description of one seen in the area just prior to the gunfire and tried to make a traffic stop, Lt. Miriam Foxx said. The driver sped off, prompting a roughly five-minute road chase into National City, where the motorist managed to lose the pursuing officers.
The motive for the shooting remains unknown, Foxx said.
According to a spokeswoman for Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Joseph rose to the rank of Chief Navy Counselor in April 2020 and was detached from a duty station. But he previously served on the USS Stethem, USS Donald Cook and with Fleet Logistics Support Squadrons in North Island and at sea.
He held these awards and decorations:
- Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist
- Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist
- Navy/Marine Corps Commendation Medal
- Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medal (6)
- Navy “E” Ribbon (5)
- Good Conduct Medal (3)
- National Defense Service Medal
- Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal (2)
- Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
- Humanitarian Service Medal
- Sea Service Deployment Ribbon (3)
- Overseas Service Ribbon (2)
- NATO medal.
— City News Service contributed to this report