APRIL 21, 2015
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
A pilot killed himself by intentionally crashing his plane
into a field in Northern California a day
after pleading not guilty to domestic violence charges, authorities said
Tuesday
Zachary Cain Stickler, 34, entered the plea on Friday in
Shasta County Superior Court to a felony count of making criminal threats and a
misdemeanor battery charge, Chief Deputy District Attorney Stephanie Bridgett
said.
The charges stemmed from an argument in February in Redding,
California, that escalated and became physical, Bridgett said. The victim was
dating Stickler, and the two were living together.
She reported online to police that her boyfriend had been
violent and then left, and that her cellphone had been destroyed in the
process, according to a Redding police report. She declined medical attention.
Stickler killed himself by crashing into a pasture on
Saturday morning, Shasta County Sheriff's Deputy Dustin Reynolds said.
Sheriff's officials responded to a report of an explosion around 8:30 a.m. and
found a small debris field at the site where the single-engine Cessna crashed.
Text messages Stickler sent to friends and family before he
crashed indicated he was distraught and planned to kill himself, Reynolds said.
There was no indication he wanted to hurt anyone else, Reynolds added.
Sheriff's officials said they did not know what, if
anything, triggered Stickler to kill himself.
Stickler worked as a flight instructor in 2014 at AFT Center
Flight Training in Long Beach, California, said Jason Lamberton, the company's
chief operating officer.
He was a skilled trainer who had a good rapport with
students, Lamberton said, adding that he offered to provide Stickler with a reference
when Stickler said he was leaving so his girlfriend could pursue an opportunity
elsewhere.
"I'm absolutely shocked," Lamberton said when told
about the domestic violence charges and crash. "There was nothing like
that whatsoever in his behavior. The young man was very professional with what
he did here. We were really happy with him."
He worked more recently for Aperture Aviation, an aerial
photography company, which extended its sympathies to his family and friends in
a statement.
The Federal
Aviation Administration has assigned two inspectors to the crash, one of
whom may conduct an on-site inspection, FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said.
Listen folks, it does not worth killing yourself over a
woman (or a man). There are many orange
trees that make oranges. Keep trying to
find the one that is good for your mind.