A man accused of intentionally striking a San Diego motorcycle officer with a car in Mira Mesa pleaded not guilty Wednesday to assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer.
Moises Correa faces 35 years to life in state prison if convicted due to having two prior strike convictions, including a 2011 attempted murder conviction out of Maricopa County, Arizona, according to the criminal complaint filed against him.
Correa, 29, is accused of wounding the unidentified officer just after 10 a.m. Thursday after the officer stopped a black Chrysler Correa at Black Mountain Road and Westview Parkway.
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Police say the Chrysler sped away with the officer behind it. A few blocks later, the driver stopped in the middle of the roadway, then accelerated in reverse, sending the sedan crashing into the motorcycle, according to SDPD Lt. Andra Brown.
The officer was knocked over and Correa continued to push the motorcycle backward with the officer pinned under it, police said.
The driver, who had a female passenger riding with him, then allegedly fled north on Black Mountain Road.
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Police said there were several witnesses who quickly rushed to the officer and helped him before medics arrived. The officer was later taken to a local hospital and has since been released with minor injuries.
The officer, who has not been identified, has been with the police department for 13 years and assigned to the department's Traffic Division Motorcycle Unit for more than five years.
About 6 p.m. Friday, officers learned that Correa was in the Mira Mesa area, Brown said. A police air unit spotted Correa and a female companion -- believed to be the same passenger in the car at the time of the alleged crime -- in the backyard of a home in the 9100 block of Dewsbury Avenue, a little more than a mile from where the crash with the officer occurred.
The two suspects went into the house and officers surrounded the dwelling, the lieutenant said. Other occupants of the house came out and a SWAT team responded to the scene.
After a standoff that lasted several hours, the two suspects were located in the rafters of the garage and still refused to come out, Brown said.
After a standoff that lasted several hours, Correa and the female were not located until officers conducted a secondary sweep of the residence and found them in the rafters of the garage, but they still refused to get out, Brown said.
"Chemical agents were introduced into the garage and Correa and the female surrendered without further incident," Brown said.
They were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Correa remains held without bail.
