Man accused in Roseville park shootout, hospital escape enters insanity plea to murder charges
A man accused of killing a hostage and shooting two others — including a California Highway Patrol officer — at Roseville park two years ago, and later escaping from custody, amended his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity to numerous charges including murder, attempted murder, kidnapping and escape from custody.
The change during a hearing Wednesday in Placer Superior Court sets up what could be an even lengthier trial for Eric Abril, who has remained in custody since his recapture in 2023.
Prosecutors say Abril, 37, shot and killed 72-year-old James MacEgan and wounded his wife, Patricia, and CHP Officer Matthew Hiatt during a gun battle with law enforcement on April 6, 2023, at Mahany Park. Prosecutors said Abril was armed with a 10 mm handgun and a body-armor vest in the showdown.
Authorities said Abril shot the CHP officer before taking the MacEgans hostage. During a standoff, he shot them both, prosecutors say. Patricia MacEgan and the officer survived their injuries after CHP officers attempted to serve a search warrant on Abril.
Authorities were trying to serve the warrant in connection with a freeway shooting two months earlier on a Sacramento County freeway, according to court documents.
Three months later, on July 9, Abril was taken to Sutter Roseville Medical Center after experiencing seizure-like episodes in jail. He escaped while receiving treatment by defeating his restraints and fleeing his hospital room about 3 a.m. when the deputy assigned to watch over him wasn’t looking.
His escape led to a 33-hour manhunt as authorities searched wooded areas around the hospital campus as well as Abril’s mother’s home near the Mahany Park crime scene. SWAT teams combed through open fields and tracked sightings of him in nearby Rocklin while authorities urged residents to shelter in place. The search ended when a Rocklin resident spotted Abril in Antelope Creek behind a residential tract on July 10. Wearing nothing but jail-issued underwear, Abril was arrested without further incident.
Days later, the D.A.’s Office added a felony charge of escaping from law enforcement custody while felony charges are pending.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Abril, wearing an orange-and-white striped jail shirt, re-entered his not-guilty plea to the charges and added a second plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.
Judge Michael W. Jones accepted the new plea, and said that Abril could now face two separate trials — one to determine basic guilt or innocence and, if found guilty, a second trial to determine his sanity.
He appointed a psychologist to evaluate Abril and set a date of April 23 for a hearing to discuss medical reports. The trial will be postponed until the medical evaluations and an anticipated lengthy discovery process can take place.
A Placer County grand jury investigation later concluded that inadequate training, policy failures and negligence contributed to Abril’s escape. The report revealed that the Sheriff’s Office did not provide formal training on hospital inmate transports or supervision, and deputies had discretion in applying security classifications for inmates transported outside the jail.
The Placer County grand jury found that the deputy assigned to guard Abril left the hospital room 14 times over an eight-hour shift, leaving Abril unattended for a total of 27 minutes. Surveillance footage showed that Abril freed himself from his handcuff when the deputy was out of sight.
A wrongful death lawsuit filed against the CHP by the MacEgan family contended that “reckless planning” by officers contributed to the gunfight and James MacEgan’s death. The suit claims that officers failed to notify Roseville police before engaging Abril in a public area filled with families and children attending spring break camps.
The lawsuit further alleges that the CHP violated its own policies by failing to have enough officers during the warrant execution or establish a perimeter before attempting to arrest Abril. The state Attorney General’s Office sought to have the lawsuit dismissed arguing that the agency was immune from liability for injuries caused by a suspect. However, the MacEgans’ attorney argued that law enforcement tactics led to the hostage situation.
A judge rejected the Department of Justice’s dismissal request and a civil trial was expected to begin in Sacramento Superior Court next month.
Abril remains held without bail in South Placer Jail.
This story was originally published February 26, 2025 at 11:12 AM.
