LA nightclub crash: driver charged with 37 counts of attempted murder
Fernando Ramirez, who has a criminal history, is accused of intentionally driving his car onto the pavement as party-goers were leaving an LA nightclub on Saturday
Fernando Ramirez, 29, was also charged with 37 felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon. If convicted, he could face multiple sentences of life imprisonment.
Ramirez is accused of intentionally driving his car onto the pavement as party-goers were leaving the Vermont Hollywood venue at the end of a reggae hip-hop event early on Saturday. The motive for the attack, which injured 37 people, was still unknown.
A phone number for Ramirez could not be found in an online database search, and the public defender’s office said they have not been appointed to represent him.
“When he drove that car onto that pavement, he aimed it at a whole sea of pedestrians,” LA County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in announcing the charges.
The car came to a stop after colliding with several food carts, which became lodged underneath the vehicle, and bystanders attacked the driver, police said. Injuries ranged from minor to serious fractures and lacerations, and some people were briefly trapped beneath the vehicle.