Trial ordered for Point Loma man accused of intentionally striking SDPD officer with Jeep

A Point Loma man accused of intentionally striking a San Diego police officer with his vehicle has been ordered to stand trial on charges that include attempted murder.

William Stephens, 65, is accused of driving his Jeep toward Officer Matthew Salisbury, one of several officers who went to Stephens’ home Jan. 23 in response to a report of domestic violence.

As Salisbury approached the driveway, prosecutors allege, Stephens sped toward the officer, who tried to evade the vehicle by moving behind a bush near the driveway’s entrance. Prosecutors say Stephens turned the Jeep toward the bush, striking Salisbury and then crashing into a mailbox and another vehicle parked on the street.

Salisbury suffered fractures to one of his legs and a dislocated knee, according to evidence presented at a July 28 preliminary hearing in San Diego held to determine whether Stephens must go to trial on the charges.

According to authorities, officers responded after Stephens’ wife called 911 and said her husband had threatened her with a knife and she had suffered a cut on her hand.

The woman testified that Stephens had been incensed in the days before Jan. 23 because a federal job he had been hired for earlier was eliminated following the Trump administration’s hiring freeze for federal employees.

Stephens’ wife testified that a series of troubling text messages from him led her to stay at her sister’s home the night of Jan. 22 because “I feared for my safety.”

The woman and her sister went to the Stephens home the following morning and found Stephens inside.

Both women testified that Stephens appeared incredibly angry and demanded that they leave.

His wife testified that he said “Somebody’s going to get hurt. Nobody’s taking me seriously.”

He then grabbed a knife from the kitchen and said “Maybe now you’ll take me seriously,” his wife testified.

She said she approached Stephens, put her hand up in a defensive gesture when he held the knife close to her, and attempted to grab the blade, cutting her hand in the process.

The women then left the house and called 911, at which point Stephens grabbed the phone out of his wife’s hand and threw it to the ground, according to testimony.

Body-worn camera footage from multiple police officers that was played during the hearing showed the Jeep striking Salisbury. After the impact, Stephens exited the Jeep and was taken to the ground by multiple officers and handcuffed.

San Diego County Deputy Public Defender Brianne Murphy argued there was no indication that Stephens intended to strike the officer, and she suggested he may not even have seen Salisbury.

The attorney said Stephens, based on his wife and sister-in-law’s testimony regarding his recent behavior, likely was heavily intoxicated at the time. Murphy described her client as under the influence, “in a blind rage” and trying to rapidly get away from the home rather than specifically speeding at the officer.

Superior Court Judge Daniel Goldstein disagreed, saying Stephens had “plenty of room” to drive past Salisbury and other officers, yet veered his Jeep sharply toward the bush where Salisbury was taking cover.