Crime & Safety
Man Sentenced For Striking San Diego Motorcycle Officer With Car
Moises Correa, 31, was convicted by a San Diego jury of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer.
SAN DIEGO, CA —A man who intentionally struck a San Diego motorcycle officer with a car in Mira Mesa was sentenced Tuesday to 53 years to life in state prison.
Moises Correa, 31, was convicted by a San Diego jury of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer for reversing his vehicle into San Diego police Officer Christopher Pate on July 8, 2021 during an attempted traffic stop. The impact pinned Pate beneath his motorcycle, leaving him with a leg injury that he said Tuesday has caused likely permanent nerve damage.
Correa was also convicted of two robbery counts for holding up a gas station and a 99 Cents store a few days prior. Both businesses were also in the Mira Mesa area.
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Correa's convictions prompted him to be sentenced under California's three-strikes law, adding a 25-year-to-life term to his sentence.
He was previously convicted in Arizona of attempted murder for a shooting committed when he was 17 years old. He was tried as an adult and sentenced to more than 10 years in prison.
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Following his release from prison, he was convicted in San Diego County of domestic violence and assault in two separate crimes.
According to Deputy District Attorney Kelsey Hollander, Pate attempted to pull Correa over for speeding near the intersection of Black Mountain Road and Westview Parkway.
San Diego police said that after speeding away from the officer, Correa later pulled to a stop in a traffic lane, then accelerated in reverse, sending the sedan crashing into the motorcycle. Correa then drove off, but was arrested the following day after a standoff with police at a Mira Mesa home.
At Correa's sentencing hearing, Pate said he was not aware of the robberies when he tried to pull Correa over.
"Mr. Correa made the choice to do what he did to me that day just because he didn't want to be held accountable for his actions," Pate said. "If he just handed me a driver's license on that day, I likely would have just written him a ticket and sent him down the road. Instead, he decided it would probably be better to try and kill me."
— City News Service
