Father Louis Gutierrez was a Roman Catholic priest vacationing from the Los Angeles area. He and a traveling companion, also a Catholic priest, visited San Diego and checked into adjoining rooms at the Surfer Motor Lodge at 711 Pacific Beach Drive.

At about 6 a.m. on April 26, 1994, the fellow priest was awakened by a crashing sound coming from Gutierrez room and the sound of a door slamming shut. The companion eventually gained entry into Gutierrez room and discovered Gutierrez lying on the floor dead from a gunshot wound to the head. The hotel room appeared to have been ransacked and the unknown suspect escaped without being seen.