Man who killed Miami-Dade deputy battled mental health, money issues, friend says
The night before Steven David Rustrian killed a Miami-Dade sheriff’s deputy, he sat on the beach, coming to grips with a life that had been spiraling out of control, a close friend of his told the Miami Herald.
At 21 years old, Rustrian, a former soldier, was drowning in deeply personal problems, said his friend, Ivan Romero. He talked about facing his demons. He said he wanted to go back to church.
The next time they talked, things were very different.
Rustrian had been in a crash. He was on the verge of a panic attack. He sent Romero his location. But his friend, one of the last people to speak to Rustrian, was too far away to help.
Then Romero saw the news: Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Deputy Devin Jaramillo, 27, had been killed while responding to a minor crash in Kendall. He knew it was Rustrian. He just didn’t know why.
“He was kind,” Romero said. “But he was struggling.”
READ MORE: ‘Homegrown hero.’ Fallen Miami-Dade deputy grew up surrounded by law enforcement
Now, two young men are dead, families are mourning, and communities are reeling, with unanswered questions about what led to a fatal scuffle between Rustrian and Jaramillo, and why Rustrian pulled the trigger.
Struggling with mental illness
Romero met Rustrian earlier this year. He described him as a kind, but private person.
During their many talks, Romero learned that the 21-year-old suffered from depression. He was taking antidepressants. He had confided in his friend that he struggled with thoughts of suicide.
Romero did not believe he was seeing a therapist or medical professional.
Rustrian served in the Army as an infantryman from January 2023 to May 2024, a U.S. Army spokesperson told the Herald. He did not deploy and left at the rank of private first class. The Army would not say his reason for leaving, citing the Privacy Act.
Romero said Rustrian’s personal life had been unraveling. He’d lost his job as a paralegal at a Miami law firm. He was actively searching for work and had a job interview scheduled in a few days.
“He was starting to feel desperate about his finances and being able to make it in Miami,” said Romero.
He said Rustrian was living in a run-down efficiency in Miami, near Allapatah. Rustrian was also financially responsible for a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house built in 1930 that he bought in Jamestown, New York in 2024 for $60,000, according to property records.
“He was struggling with his mental health, his finances and the reality of needing a sizable income to live in a city like this,” Romero said.
Romero also saw Rustrian engaging in dangerous behavior, like driving well over the speed limit. Rustrian told Romero he’d been in a crash just a few months prior that totaled his car, leading him to buy a new one. The Herald has also learned that Rustrian was arrested on May 16 in the Town of Colchester, New York, for reckless driving during a police pursuit.
“I think his judgment was affected by the medication he was taking,” Romero said. “I think his medication made him numb to danger in a way that was concerning for me.”
The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office has not released information on any criminal history Rustrian may have had, his mental health history or their investigation into the case.
READ MORE: Miami-Dade deputy’s killer identified. Who is 21-year-old Steven David Rustrian?
‘Extremely heartbroken’
Rustrian’s sister, who did not wish to be named, told the Herald her brother was alone in Florida. He came down because of his love for the ocean, she said, but was struggling with isolation.
“Everybody is going through life and the motions of life, especially being by himself and a different state,” she said.
Rustrian was the youngest of five children and originally from New York.
His sister vividly remembers bringing him home from the hospital after his birth. She said she is holding onto the happier memories she has of him.
“It’s sad to say this, but there’s not a whole lot to say about his life because he was so young,” she said. “I have nothing but loving and sweet things to say about my brother … and I’m extremely heartbroken.”
An hour before her brother’s death, she received a text from him. He said he loved her, missed her, and wanted to talk soon, as he’d been busy lately.
They’d never get the chance.
Rustrian’s father, Mauricio Rustrian, spoke with the Herald earlier this week. He was grieving for his son. Like his daughter, he also wished sympathy and condolences for Jaramillo and his family.
“I’m so sorry for the deputy’s family,” he said.
Night before the murder
On the night of Nov. 6, less than 24 hours before Rustrian would gun down Jaramillo, he sat with Romero on the shoreline of Miami Beach discussing life.
Rustrian said he was finding clarity, which made Romero hopeful. He began discussing the weight of good and evil in the world, and his desire to return to church. The 21-year-old was raised Christian and worshiped with his family, a big part of his life at one point.
That week, Romero had seen Rustrian in high spirits. He seemed to be dealing better with his problems.
Then, at around 3:50 p.m. on Nov. 7, Rustrian got into a crash with another vehicle, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office has said.
READ MORE: New details emerge in case of Miami-Dade deputy who was fatally shot on duty
The two cars headed to a nearby parking lot lined on either side by small businesses. During the drive to the parking lot, Rustrian called Romero. They’d earlier talked that day about how the 21-year-old was feeling exhausted.
“He told me he had just been in a car accident, and he felt like he was about to have a panic attack,” Romero said. “He asked me to come help him, but I told him I was around an hour away.”
After the two-minute call, Romero sent Rustrian several text messages asking if he was OK, but they went unanswered. Romero had an uneasy feeling. He knew that when Rustrian was panicked his instincts were often to fight.
Romero also knew that Rustrian sometimes had an extreme reaction to physical touch, which could lead him to feel overstimulated, flighty and panicked. Romero had seen Rustrian become frustrated at just a brush if he didn’t already expect the contact.
He dreaded what could happen.
In the parking lot, Rustrian switched seats with his passenger, according to deputies. Reports of a routine crash in the Kendall area reached the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office. Jaramillo was randomly selected to respond to the scene, near Southwest 122nd Avenue and 128th Street.
He arrived. Jaramillo spoke with the passenger, who at first said he was driving but quickly admitted Rustrian was behind the wheel.
Surveillance video from a nearby business showed Jaramillo, after speaking with the passenger, bring Rustrian from his car to talk with him separately. Rustrian appeared to follow his commands with no complaints. But the 21-year-old became more animated as the conversation went on, making gestures with his arms as he talked. Jaramillo also became more animated.
Jaramillo then grabbed Rustrian’s arm. The video has no sound, so it’s unclear what was said between the two men. But Rustrian pulled his arm away and began backing away from the deputy. Jaramillo then lunged onto the 21-year-old and pushed him onto Rustrian’s car to restrain him.
The deputy grabbed his face. Rustrian tried to push him off. Jaramillo then punched Rustrian twice before they grappled onto a patch of grass. During the tussle, Rustrian grabbed Jaramillo’s gun and shot the deputy several times.
Then he went into his own car and fatally shot himself.
Jaramillo was rushed to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital but did not survive. A GoFundMe was created to support Jaramillo’s family to “provide comfort and stability as they navigate the days ahead.”
“Now, during this heartbreaking time, we want to come together to support his father, Detective Jaramillo, and the entire Jaramillo family,” the fundraiser read.
Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz shared earlier this week how committed Jaramillo was to service and the smiles he brought to his colleagues.
“He was an athlete, a football player, smart, strong, handsome and young,” she said, detailing how he was a homegrown hero born in Baptist Hospital and attended Killian High School.
“He could have done anything with his professional career, but he chose public service, and he chose to do it in this community to serve us, and he gave the ultimate price in his service,” Cordero-Stutz said.
Romero believed Rustrian was trying to pull his life together, to make something of himself. He was looking for a path. He got lost.
“He was living life like he had nothing to lose,” Romero told the Herald. “And I recognized that as something dangerous.”
Miami Herald staff writer David J. Neal contributed to this report.
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