Suspect arrested in fatal shooting of Vallejo grandmother in bed during Fourth of July celebrations

VALLEJO — A Vallejo resident was arrested on Thursday in connection with the fatal shooting of a Vallejo grandmother who was killed when a bullet pierced the wall of her trailer while she was lying in bed early in the morning on July 5.

The Vallejo Sun confirmed that Vallejo police arrested Jose Guadalupe Castillo, 42, early Thursday morning for the suspected killing of 45-year-old Courtney Whitney.  His bail was set at $285,000, according to jail logs.

According to a Vallejo police press release, the Solano County District Attorney’s Office charged  Castillo on Friday with second degree murder, carrying a loaded firearm while a felon, shooting at an inhabited dwelling and committing a felony while on bail.

Vallejo police previously arrested Castillo on May 3 for “willfully discharging a firearm in a grossly negligent manner,” according to police.

Whitney was celebrating the Fourth of July with loved ones, when after having reported feeling unwell, retreated to her trailer to lay in bed. At around 1:30 a.m., a stray .40 caliber bullet entered through the wall and struck her in the back of the head. Whitney died later that day in Kaiser Vallejo.

From the location of the bullet hole, it appeared that the bullet might have originated from someone driving south on I-80.

Last week, Vallejo police issued a press release asking if anyone had witnessed “any relevant activity that may have occurred on eastbound Interstate 80, during the hours of 1:25 a.m. and 1:35 a.m. on July 5.” It also asked if any businesses or individuals had security cameras overlooking the interstate.

The Vallejo Veterans Memorial Building across the street from where Whitney lived has security cameras overviewing the freeway.

Sunshine Easter, who works at the Veterans Memorial Building, says investigators came over the two days following the shooting, as well as Thursday this week, asking to view the security footage. At one point, Easter said to have seen the investigators leaving visibly happy.

DeAnna Whalen, the building manager, said the investigators confiscated the DVR recording device and associated footage. 

Whalen said she believes that the footage, along with other witnesses and video evidence, were able to identify the suspect and vehicle, calling it a community effort.

Vallejo police spotted Castillo on July 16 on Admiral Callaghan Lane, the same street where Whitney lived and was killed. 

“When the officers attempted to contact Castillo, he tried to evade them and quickly walked into a convenience store,” police said in the press release. “The officers entered the store and arrested Castillo without incident.”

“During the arrest, officers located a firearm equipped with an extended magazine in the aisle where Castillo had been standing prior to him being apprehended,” police said.

Easter knew Whitney for over 10 years and said she was with her earlier that day on the Fourth of July. “Courtney was going to go meet her daughter and was waiting for her outside, so we were chatting,” Easter said. “She was telling me about the day they had planned together.” 

“You can’t go around shooting at residential houses like that,” Easter said. “At least she was with her kids that day. Life is too short and never promised.”

Whalen said she met Whitney for the first time on the Fourth and said they bonded over her sharing the same first name with Whitney’s daughter. Last week, Whalen attended a candlelight vigil at the waterfront for her where the family shared their memories of Whitney and released purple balloons into the afternoon sky, Whitney’s favorite color.

Castillo is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday at 9 a.m.

Editor's note: This story was updated to correct Castillo's city of residence and include information from the Vallejo police press release.