Officer to Stand Trial for Brawl at Gas Station

An off-duty police officer apparently tried to shoot a man during an altercation at a Chula Vista gas station, even though the intended victim was standing within feet of a tanker truck that was delivering gasoline.

Evidence presented in court Wednesday indicates that a catastrophic explosion may have been avoided only because the magazine in the officer’s 9-millimeter semiautomatic handgun was accidentally ejected earlier in the fight, activating an automatic safety device that prevented the gun from firing once the ammunition was reinserted.

“I thought I was dead, more or less,” said Jessie Smith, who testified that San Diego Police Officer Alonzo Alexander pulled back the action on his weapon and pointed the gun at his face.

Testimony outlining the Jan. 29 incident came during a preliminary hearing for Alexander, who is charged with assaulting two men at a Shell gas station on Otay Valley Road.

After the hearing, Municipal Judge E. Mac Amos Jr. ordered Alexander, a 2 1/2-year San Diego police veteran, to stand trial on six felony and two misdemeanor assault counts.

The altercation started when Smith, 26, pulled up next to a gas pump that Alexander, 28, apparently wanted to use. Although Smith testified that he apologized if any wrong was done, he said that Alexander later approached his vehicle and delivered an unprovoked kick to his head.

“He continued to tell me I had a problem, and the next thing I knew, I was dodging a kick,” Smith said.

After Smith diverted the blow with his arm, the two were involved in a wrestling duel, during which Alexander produced the firearm, according to the testimony.

Smith said he immediately grabbed the barrel of the gun, and “I started slamming both of our hands down to the ground.”

This action apparently caused the magazine to become dislodged and skim across the asphalt to the wheels of a tanker truck, which was pumping gasoline into underground tanks.

After Alexander took aim and attempted to fire the gun with no results, the attacker examined the weapon and realized the clip was missing, Smith testified. Both men then attempted to gain control of the eight-round magazine, but Alexander hit Smith in the back of his head with the gun, Smith testified.

After Alexander replaced the part necessary to fire the gun, a bleeding and dizzy Smith took refuge behind Bryan Hession, the truck driver who was pumping the gasoline and attempted to gather up the delivery hoses, according to testimony from both men.

The two alleged victims both testified they were standing in a pool of spilled gasoline very close to the tanker when Alexander again aimed his gun and ordered Smith to the ground. While Smith said he heard Alexander identify himself as a police officer, Hession testified that he did not.

“He was basically in a rage as far as I could see,” Hession said.

Alexander eventually placed the weapon in his vehicle--where his 3-year-old daughter was strapped into a car seat--but he returned to continue the fight, Smith said.

Alexander’s defense will be based on the argument that the off-duty officer was acting in the capacity of a police officer who was trying to arrest a man after being attacked.

Alexander’s attorney, Everett Bobbitt, denied any wrongdoing on behalf of his client.

“Mr. Smith started the fight, lost the fight, and he’s not happy about it,” Bobbitt said.

Bobbitt, who specializes in defending police officers in criminal matters, blamed the district attorney’s office for being too vigilant in its prosecution of police officers.

“It’s a continuing case of cops under the gun,” he said. “If (Alexander) wasn’t a cop, he wouldn’t have been prosecuted, and Mr. Smith would have been.”

Judge Amos ordered Alexander, who is free on his own recognizance, to appear in Superior Court on Aug. 26, when a trial date will be set. A San Diego police spokesman said the officer has been reassigned to administrative duty in the Western Division office pending the outcome of this case.

If convicted of all counts, Alexander could be sentenced to as much as 12 years in state prison.