Two days after a married couple was shot to death in their car in downtown San Diego, their family wants to know why the shooter still had access to guns.
Christopher Farrell, 26, had already been arrested for an attack on the wife.
NBC 7 spoke to domestic violence experts who say that Rachael Martinez and Jose Medina did everything right — it just wasn't enough to overcome what they were up against.
The 31- and 39-year-olds leave behind four children, ages 3-15, and their family tries to make sense of it all.
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They know Martinez had been having an affair with the shooter and later filed a restraining order against him after he violently assaulted her. They also know police arrested Farrell for this before he walked out the next day on a $50,000 bond.
What they don't know is how Farrell found the couple before Wednesday's court hearing to renew their restraining orders or how he still had the gun he used to shoot them to death.
"I believe that they should have at least, when they released him, collected them from him," Martinez's sister, Charlene, told NBC 7 on Thursday.
Michelle Tellez, an employment specialist with the Crisis House, says she agrees.
"This person is somebody who poses a threat, not just to the person that they are harassing and have assaulted, but to the rest of the community," Tellez said.
Tellez says authorities should've kept his guns from him.
"I think all it comes down to is they don't believe them. They feel like something more drastic needs to happen before they're actually taken serious," Tellez said.
A restraining order is necessary to press charges if someone violates it, she says, but a piece of paper cannot physically protect you.
"This is where a safety plan should come into place," Tellez said. "What are the steps that, for instance, Rachael would have to take in this case to make sure that she remains safe, but also her loved ones safe?"
She recommends always having someone to trust and keep in the loop about where you are. You can consider having someone escort you around. Or, if it comes to it, move away entirely.
Tellez says it's unfortunate that the burden here — like it is too often — was on the victims. Now, it's on their family, too.
Police say Farrell was fired from his job as a private security officer after his arrest. At that time, San Diego police say his duty weapon was taken.
NBC 7 asked the San Diego Police Department if Farrell was allowed to keep his personal firearms but has not received a response.
