Meet the District Attorney
Ms. Pacioni received her Bachelor of Science degree from Northern Arizona University. After receiving her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of San Diego, School of Law in 1990, she became licensed to practice law in the states of California and Arizona. In 1990, she worked as a Deputy District Attorney for the Kern County District Attorney’s Office and in 1992 she joined the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office.
In 2001, she left to raise her family, returning after an 8-year sabbatical during which time she also served as a Grand Juror of the Monterey County Civil Grand Jury, and as President of the Junior League of Monterey County. In 2012, she joined the National Charity League of Monterey Bay, of which she has served as a member of their Board of Directors. Ms. Pacioni was formerly a Board Member of the Monterey Rape Crisis Center, and is currently a member of the Monterey County Children’s Council and the Child Abuse Prevention Council. She is also a member of the Monterey County Bar Association and the California District Attorneys Association and the Monterey County Chief Law Enforcement Officers Association.
Ms. Pacioni has devoted her entire legal career to the pursuit of justice while handling virtually every type of criminal case prosecuted in Monterey County. For 20 years as a prosecutor, she has tenaciously represented victims of crime in numerous high-profile cases involving murder, gang crimes, vehicular manslaughter, assault, robbery, child molestation, adult sexual assault, and elder abuse. On November 21, 2019, Ms. Pacioni was recognized by the Monterey County Women's Lawyers Association as the 2019 recipient of the Lady Justice Lifetime Achievement Award for Legal Advocacy and Community Service.
In 2018, she was elected and became the first female District Attorney in Monterey County.
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Press Releases
DISTRICT ATTORNEY RELEASES PRELIMINARY INFORMATION CONCERNING THE OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING OCCURRING ON JANUARY 18, 2026
Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni today released preliminary information concerning the officer involved shooting (OIS) which occurred at about 4:56 pm in the city of Marina on January 18, 2026.
The following summary relies on video evidence and January 21 interviews of the officers conducted by the Monterey County DA Bureau of Investigation, in addition to records from filed cases.
At approximately 4:50 p.m., Marina Police Officer Shivdev Dhillon patrolled the Marina Heights area when he observed a van without a front license plate, which is a violation of Vehicle Code section 5200. He also recognized the driver as Ronald Tinsley, who Officer Dhillon had arrested in June 2025 for felon in possession of ammunition. This case had been filed and was proceeding through the court system. Officer Dhillon had received a subpoena to testify in that case but was called off because he was informed Mr. Tinsley had failed to appear. Officer Dhillon also knew that Mr. Tinsley had multiple domestic violence cases with a female whose full name he knew, referred to herein as Jane Doe. In December 2025, the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office filed a felony domestic violence case with Jane Doe as a victim. The case was proceeding through the court system. Officer Dhillon knew that Mr. Tinsley had injured officers resisting arrest in that case. He knew that Mr. Tinsley “was affiliated with, registered, or takes part with” the Crip Street Gang. Within the last two workdays, an informant told him that narcotics were being sold from two houses in that area. He knows that gang members fund their activities through narcotics sales, and they carry firearms.
Officer Dhillon turned to follow the van and saw that it had expired registration tags in violation of Vehicle Code section 4000(a). Officer Dhillon initiated a traffic stop. During the contact, Officer Dhillon observed Mr. Tinsley’s cell phone (Mr. Tinsley was not talking on the phone when Officer Dhillon arrived at the driver’s door or thereafter) and believed he saw Jane Doe’s name on the screen. He asked Mr. Tinsley to see the phone because he believed that Mr. Tinsley was prohibited by court order from contacting Jane Doe because of the felony domestic violence case. Mr. Tinsley declined to show him the phone and stated he had been talking to his mother. In fact, in the felony domestic violence case the court ordered Mr. Tinsley to have no contact with Jane Doe including by telephone. The court additionally ordered that Mr. Tinsley not possess any firearm. Mr. Tinsley had posted bail in that case and in the felon in possession of ammunition case.
See Officer Dhillon’s bodycam for more details concerning the exchange and the demeanors of Officer Dhillon and Mr. Tinsley at the driver’s side of Mr. Tinsley’s van.
Two other Marina officers, Seivers and Rose, hearing that Officer Dhillon had stopped Mr. Tinsley, decided to respond to the scene because they knew of Mr. Tinsley’s violent history. They got out of their patrol cars and stood on either side of Mr. Tinsley’s van.
Because of Officer Dhillon’s concerns that Mr. Tinsley might be armed and due to Mr. Tinsley’s behavior, which he regarded as suspicious because it was atypical, Officer Dhillon lawfully directed Mr. Tinsley to step out of the vehicle. Mr. Tinsley first did not follow instructions and then resisted, and as Officer Dhillon attempted to turn off the van’s ignition, Mr. Tinsley hit the accelerator, taking Officer Dhillon with him.
The van began accelerating at 4:55:51 seconds. Officer Dhillon was inside the driver’s compartment of the van, struggling for control of the steering wheel and repeatedly telling Mr. Tinsley to “Stop!” and “Stop the car!” Mr. Tinsley repeatedly yelled “No!” The van travelled on Marina Heights Drive, past Bluffs Drive, and entered a dirt lot, where it collided with a small embankment and came to rest, a distance of about 300 feet.
When the van took off, Officers Seivers and Rose immediately ran to their patrol cars and got in to follow.
During the struggle in the van, Mr. Tinsley struck Officer Dhillon in the head repeatedly. The van came to a stop at 4:56:02. Suddenly Officer Dhillon realized Mr. Tinsley grabbed an object wrapped in cloth between Mr. Tinsley’s right leg and the center console. The two struggled over the bundle, which Mr. Tinsley tried to raise, and which Officer Dhillon could feel contained a revolver. Officer Dhillon yelled, “If you have a gun, I’m going to shoot you in the back of the head!” In response, Mr. Tinsley says words that are difficult to discern but seem to end with “. . . Do it!” Officer Dhillon then repeatedly yelled, “He has a gun!” Officer Dhillon yelled to Mr. Tinsley, “Don’t do it!”
After alighting from his patrol car and as Officer Seivers ran at the location of the stopped van, he heard Officer Dhillon yell, “He has a gun!” From the passenger side window, Officer Sievers saw the gun in Mr. Tinsley’s hand which was covered by Officer Dhillon’s hand. The gun pointed at Officer Seiver’s direction. Both officers feared for their lives and the lives of the other officers present, which by that time included Officer Rose. At 4:56:21, Officers Dhillon and Seivers both fired their firearms once, essentially simultaneously. Only one of the rounds struck Mr. Tinsley. Mr. Tinsley stopped moving.
Thirty seconds elapsed after the van began accelerating and the officers’ fired shots. The struggle continued for 19 seconds after the van came to rest and the officers’ fired shots. Six seconds elapsed between the time Officer Dhillon first said the word gun and the officers’ fired shots.
Officer Dhillon handed Mr. Tinsley’s revolver to Officer Seivers at 4:56:42 on Officer Seiver’s bodycam. Upon subsequent examination, the revolver was loaded.
Officer Dhillon began administering medical care, including pressure and seal dressing, shortly thereafter. Other officers performed CPR. Medics arrived and began rendering aid at 5:03:27 in an ambulance. During that effort and before transport to hospital commenced, Mr. Tinsley was declared deceased.
A bindle of methamphetamine was found in Mr. Tinsley’s pants pocket. It is unknown whether methamphetamine use might have affected Mr. Tinsley’s judgment and behavior, toxicology results are pending.
An autopsy on January 21, 2026, determined that a single bullet entered Mr. Tinsley’s posterior left shoulder and travelled through his aorta. That round was recovered from Mr. Tinsley’s body.
Officer Dhillon discharged one round from his .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol. Officer Seivers discharged one round from his 9mm semi-automatic pistol. Today Salinas PD Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) test fired both firearms and compared those rounds with the one recovered from Mr. Tinsley. They determined that the round recovered from Mr. Tinsley was a .40 caliber round. They also test fired Mr. Tinsley’s revolver, and it was fully operational. It was unregistered.
Officer Dhillon has 7 years’ experience as a peace officer. Officer Seivers has two-and-a half years’ experience as a peace officer.
The OIS investigation is ongoing. After today, the district attorney’s office will have no further comment until the conclusion of the investigation.
Video on USB from the three officer’s bodycams and dashcams will be provided to credentialed media upon request who appear in person at the district attorney’s office.
Image taken from Officer Dhillon’s dash camera showing the van accelerating away with Officer Dhillon’s feet in the air.
Image taken from Officer Sievers’s body camera showing Officer Dhillon shortly after taking the revolver from Mr. Tinsley.
Photo of the revolver taken from Mr. Tinsley.
Contact Us
Main Office
142 W. Alisal Street, Suite A, Salinas, California 93901
Monterey Office
1200 Aguajito Rd. Room 301, Monterey, California 93940
King City Office
250 Franciscan Way, King City, California 93960
Phone: (831) 755-5070
Fax: (831) 755-5068
Email: publicinformation@co.monterey.ca.us