Santa Monica detectives are reviewing video evidence and witness statements to determine if additional charges are warranted.
Law enforcement personnel took a motorist into custody Sunday evening following a confrontation in downtown Santa Monica that left a pedestrian injured by a dog bite.
Santa Monica Police officers assigned to the Downtown Services Unit responded to the intersection of 3rd Street and Broadway at approximately 5:20 p.m. on May 24 after receiving reports of an assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD), in a social media post.
Investigators stated that the driver, identified as Tar Nay, stopped his vehicle in traffic and began shouting threats at two individuals who were using the crosswalk. Authorities allege Nay brandished a baseball bat from inside the vehicle, halted his car inside the intersection, and then exited the vehicle to pursue one of the pedestrians on foot.
During the foot chase, Nay’s male Cane Corso escaped or emerged from the vehicle, pursued the victim, and bit him on the thigh
SMPD officers located and detained Nay a short distance away on 4th Street. Paramedics from the Santa Monica Fire Department treated the victim at the scene for minor injuries resulting from the animal bite, and officials confirmed no further hospitalization was required.
Nay was transported to the Santa Monica Jail and booked on felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon and making criminal threats. Animal control officers took custody of the dog and transferred it to a local municipal shelter.
Detectives are currently reviewing eyewitness accounts and area surveillance footage to determine if the offensive and threatening language reportedly used by the suspect warrants additional charges or hate crime sentencing enhancements. The department urges anyone with additional information to contact investigators at 310-458-8427.
