The deputy shot while pursuing a wanted felon in Templeton Thursday has been identified as a Richard “Ted” Lehnhoff.
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson says Lehnhoff was chasing after a suspect Friday when he was shot in the lower leg at cemetery off Templeton Cemetery Road.
Lehnhoff was described as being in good spirits Friday after undergoing surgery for his injuries a day earlier.
Parkinson says Lehnhoff remains hospitalized and is “receiving a lot of support from the community and the department.”
Lehnhoff began his career with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office in April 2008 as a correctional deputy.
In May of 2013, he reportedly went through law enforcement academy in Riverside County and was later assigned to the Indio Courthouse.
Parkinson says in January of 2015, Lehnhoff returned to San Luis Obispo to work as a patrol deputy.
He has also spent time on the bike patrol team and as a court bailiff and was assigned to the sheriff’s north station as a patrol deputy at the time of Thursday’s incident.
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