Connor Sheets

Investigative & enterprise reporter @latimes | Author of Where the Fire Met the Sea, out June 2027 @BloomsburyPub

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Some personal news: I'm writing a book!

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

The L.A. County Board of Supervisors approved sweeping reforms of the county's restraining order system today. The move comes two months after @lamarr_lemee & and I reported on the many ways the system fails survivors of domestic violence and stalking.
https://t.co/QD9smxYA4W

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

The move comes three weeks after @lamarr_lemee and I published two @latimes investigations of L.A. County’s restraining order system and how it routinely fails to help or protect survivors of domestic violence and stalking, sometimes with deadly results:

https://t.co/YLY4CkHHY0

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

L.A. County leaders call for ‘bold action’ to fix restraining order system.

Supervisor Horvath presented a motion to increase funding and require the Sheriff’s Dept and county agencies to prepare reports on current efforts and improvement plans.

https://t.co/olSW4SINk3

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

If you’re interested in learning more, on Wednesday, @lamarr_lemee and I will be talking about our restraining orders investigation as part of USC’s virtual Domestic Violence Symposium alongside a stacked lineup of journalists and experts.

Register here: https://t.co/fnvQKoLvCT

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Also, huge thank you to USC’s @ReportingHealth for supporting our work via its Domestic Violence Impact Reporting Fund, which is currently accepting applications for the next round of funding. Details about how to apply for grants are at the same link: https://t.co/fnvQKoLvCT

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

If you’re interested in learning more, on Wednesday, @lamarr_lemee and I will be talking about our restraining orders investigation as part of USC’s virtual Domestic Violence Symposium alongside a stacked lineup of journalists and experts.

Register here: https://t.co/fnvQKoLvCT

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

In April 2024, Nora Villanueva Campanor fled her abusive husband Jesse Carrillo and got a restraining order against him.

Four months later, he shot her and left her dead body on a desert road. LA County’s system for protecting survivors had failed her at every turn.

1/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Learn more about Nora’s final months and our @latimes investigation of L.A. County’s restraining-order system in the stories at this link.

Stay tuned for future reporting on these issues from @lamarr_lemee & me. Thank you for reading.

20/20

https://t.co/YLY4CkHHY0

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Nora’s death could have been prevented, according to Lynn Gardner, an advocate who worked with Nora from April to August 2024, if the authorities had been more proactive in their response to the threat Carrillo posed.

18/19

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

“She said no one believed that he was going to kill her,” Gardner said.

“She went from a victim to survivor to thriver. And now that she’s in a position of thriving and wanting to have a better future for her children, that light was cut out from her.”

19/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

At an intersection, Nora jumped out of the car and tried to get into someone else's vehicle.

Carrillo shot her once in the face before she could escape, and left her dead body on the roadway. He shot & killed himself less than 2 hours later.

17/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Nora and the co-worker rushed inside. Carrillo fired a gunshot into the house that missed them, then abducted Nora, leading her out the car at gunpoint, and drove off into the night.

16/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Three months later, Nora went out with co-workers for the first time since she fled her husband’s abuse. She gave a co-worker a ride home that night.

When they arrived at the co-worker's house, Nora realized that Carrillo had followed them.

15/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

The LA County Sheriff’s Department said that the day after Carrillo was hospitalized, detectives presented a “misdemeanor spousal battery case to the district attorney’s office for filing consideration. The case was rejected.”

14/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Hours later, Carrillo was injured in a crash while driving near the house in Palmdale where Nora was staying with relatives.

A deputy served him with the restraining order in the hospital. The order was already a week from expiring.

13/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

She broke away and fled. Sheriff's deputies called Carrillo but he refused to meet with them. They declined to pursue him further.

The LASD told us it put out a broadcast and bulletin “to locate and apprehend” him. Nora's sister said the department didn’t do enough.

12/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Carrillo grabbed Nora from behind and held out a knife, urging her to plunge it into his abdomen.

“Here, just stab me,” he said as she struggled to escape. “I’m not going to hurt you. I need you to do it to me. Please, baby.”

11/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Nineteen days later, Carrillo confronted Nora during a brief stop at their Lancaster home, which she had fled the previous month.

“Call 911! Call 911! Call 911!” Nora yelled to her sister, who was watching a livestream of the incident via Ring camera. “Jazmin, he’s here!”

10/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Deputies arrested Carrillo hours after Nora fled in April 2024 and reported that their daughter alleged he'd been sexually abusing her for years.

Two days later he was back on the street. The LASD said he was released because the D.A.’s office declined to prosecute.

9/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Meanwhile, the percentage of domestic violence cases that result in prosecutors bringing charges is decreasing.

In 2025, 84% of domestic battery cases were rejected by the L.A. city attorney, up from 76% in 2019, according to our data analysis.

8/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

Getting a restraining order is only the first step. Next, it has to be served. LASD says it makes 3 attempts at service, but its data show only one failed attempt to serve Carrillo w/ Nora’s order. We found the department is increasingly failing to serve restraining orders.

7/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

In Los Angeles County, only 21% of requests for restraining orders are granted.

The court process can be hostile and overwhelming, especially for survivors who can’t afford a lawyer. Many are scared, broke and displaced.

5/20

[Connor Sheets @ConnorASheets]

A key contributing factor: 9 out of 10 people who request a restraining order do not have a lawyer to help them navigate the legal process, according to our analysis of court data.

6/20