Garden Grove, Orange County - A Garden Grove police officer was run over with a car during a traffic stop on Wednesday morning and authorities are searching for the suspect who is now wanted for attempted murder.
The suspect was pulled over for not wearing a seat-belt and, according to police, the suspect, 28-year-old Marcos Gonzalez, was acting nervous, so the police officer asked him to step out of the car.
Gonzalez stepped out of the car, but for no apparent reason he got back into the car, started it up and put the car in reverse knocking the police officer down with the car door, and then running over him, according to police.
The officer is in moderate condition at a local hospital.
Westminster criminal attorney Michael L. Guisti explains that attempted murder is a very serious charge that could send the suspect to prison for the rest of his life.
The Orange County prosecution must prove two things in this case, that the suspect took at least one direct step towards killing another person, and that he intended to kill that person, according to Guisti.
For prosecutors it's usually easy to prove the first step of directly killing somebody, but, Guisti says, proving the second element is always a bit tricky, because in many attempted murder cases perhaps the suspect was looking to only injury the person.
Basically, Guisti says, if you didn't intend to kill the person then there is no attempted murder case.
In this case the prosecution is going to need to prove the suspect intended to kill the Garden Grove police officer, says Guisti.
While allegedly running over a police officer would seem like attempted murder, an experienced Orange County criminal defense attorney could show the judge the intent of the suspect was to only assault the officer, which, while still a very serious charge, is a lessor serious charge.
If you or somebody you know is being accused of attempted murder you must contact our Orange County homicide attorney experts at the Law Offices of Michael L. Guisti at 888-478-8999.
Claiming you performed attempted murder and proving you actually did perform attempted murder are two very different things, which is why you must contact our professional lawyers right away.
