Man Accused of Stabbing Calif. Deputy in Neck During Homeless Outreach

A man suspected of stabbing an Orange County sheriff’s deputy in San Clemente on Tuesday, Mar. 18, has been arrested, the department said.

Moses Paulisin, 35, is accused of injuring the deputy while she was doing routine homeless outreach near the 1700 block of Avenida Estacion.

Paulisin then fled, authorities said.

On Wednesday, March 19, Paulisin, who the department said was a transient, was found approximately eight miles away from the stabbing scene at San Onofre State Beach by California State Park officers, authorities said.

Dennis White, a State Parks peace officer and lifeguard supervisor, said a surfer out in the water catching waves spotted the suspect and called authorities and met them on the sand.

White and his partner, Colin Daxon, a State Parks peace officer and ranger, approached the man, asleep in a sleeping bag on the sand just south of the popular surf break.

“It looked like he was taking a nap,” White said. “We couldn’t tell if it was him or not — he was covered in the sleeping bag. We had to go around to see his face, and when we saw his face we knew immediately it was him.”

The State Parks officers arrested the suspect, who didn’t say anything, and contacted the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

“They came very quickly,” White said of deputies. “It ended up being a good outcome, and I’m glad the deputy is recovering.”

Paulisin was to be booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder, resisting arrest and assault with a deadly weapon.

Details regarding what prompted the assault were unclear.

The injured deputy was treated at a hospital for a laceration to her neck on Tuesday and released the same day.

_______________

©2025 MediaNews Group, Inc.

Visit ocregister.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.