Tulare County Sheriff's Office investigating shooting after 19-year-old killed in Cutler

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Tulare County Sheriff's Office is working to piece together what led up to a shooting in the Cutler area that killed a 19-year-old.

Deputies were called to Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia around noon on Sunday for someone with a gunshot wound.

The victim died at the hospital.

Investigators say the victim was dropped off there by 37-year-old Joseph Morales, who is considered a person of interest in the fatal shooting.

Deputies searched Morales's car and found the gun they believe was used in the shooting.

"We do think this was accidental. These two appear to be friends. Their families know each other well," says Ashley Ritchie with the Tulare County Sheriff's Office. "It seems like these two were friends for a while, but we're still trying to get a clear story of what exactly happened."

Deputies say Morales is not cooperating with the investigation, even getting combative.

"When we were trying to swab his cheek, he tried to bite one of our deputies," says Ritchie.

The sheriff's office says Morales has also given conflicting stories about the shooting.

"We don't have a crime scene because the stories are changing," she says.

Morales is booked in the Tulare County Jail for allegedly being a felon in possession of a firearm, ammunition and a controlled substance, vandalism, and assault on a law enforcement officer.

The shooting remains under investigation.

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