The man who drove a U-Haul rental into a crowd of people outside a bar in Encinitas and injuring three pleaded not guilty in court on Wednesday.
Christian Davis, 28, was charged with two counts of attempted murder, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and DUI with multiple victims, the District Attorney's Office said.
On Sunday, Davis drove a rental U-Haul van into a crowd of people at around 1:19 a.m. after being kicked out of a bar.
During the investigation, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department determined Davis had been at the bar SHELTER and was asked to leave due to his level of intoxication.
Outside the bar, Davis was seen arguing with the bouncers and even attacked one of them, a witness said.
"The defendant was making direct threats to the security guards at SHELTER. He was being escorted out of the bar, he tried to reenter, he told them, 'you are going to regret this, I'm going to come back and kill you.'" said Deputy District Attorney Kimberly Coulter.
Moments later, Davis got into his rental U-Haul van and intentionally drove it into a crowd of people standing outside the bar, SDSO said.
Three men were injured in the crash. A 24-year-old underwent emergency surgery, another 24-year-old is in the intensive care unit, and a 23-year-old was treated for minor injuries.
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Davis faces up to life in prison if convicted. He is being held on a $1 million bail. His next court date is March 12.
