On Nov. 7, 2018, a suspect entered the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, where 259 patrons and employees were enjoying the evening. The suspect then began a horrendous mass shooting incident that ended with the senseless murder of 12 people, including Sgt. Ron Helus of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office. Sgt. Helus was ambushed and shot by the suspect while he and other first responders attempted entry into the building. Unfortunately, during the chaotic and fast-moving events, Sgt. Helus was also struck by "friendly fire."

Ron Chips is a 24-year veteran of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office. In addition to various assignments in both custody and operations divisions, Ron has been a SWAT team member for over 18 years and is a team supervisor. He is also a rapid deployment/active shooter instructor for sworn personnel and teaches civilian response to active shooter events to members of the community. At the time of the Borderline mass shooting, Ron was assigned as a homicide investigator and took part in the criminal investigation of this incident. Due to his tactical expertise, Ron was also asked to join as the only non-management member of the after-action committee evaluating his agency's response. Ron has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Leadership Studies from Humboldt State University.