Mountain View Man Arrested on Suspicion of Hate Crime Following DUI Collision, Assault
MOUNTAIN VIEW (CBS SF) -- Police in Mountain View on Monday confirmed the arrest of a man on suspicion of a hate crime and other charges after he became aggressive with a driver and a passenger following a traffic collision Sunday afternoon.
On Sunday, Aug. 1, at around 12 p.m., officers responded to the 1600 block of Villa Street for reports of a crash involving two vehicles. The caller -- who was involved in the collision -- told authorities the other driver involved in the crash had become agitated and after the collision, physically assaulted both him and his wife, who was a passenger in the vehicle.
The caller also said the other driver had made racially charged comments at them before fleeing the scene on foot. Police said both the driver and his wife are Hispanic.
Arriving officers investigated the crash and at took statements from the two victims before beginning a search for the other driver involved in the crash. The victim indicated the other driver had run to an apartment complex located on the 200 block of Chiquita Avenue.
Officers found the suspect -- who authorities identified as Black 37-year-old Mountain View resident Shamir Simmons -- at his apartment at that location and he was subsequently detained.
Further investigation by officers determined that Simmons was intoxicated. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, hit and run, battery and hate crime as requested by the other driver and his wife involved in the collision.
Police said that when Simmons was brought to a Mountain View police station for processing prior to being transported to the Santa Clara County Jail, the suspect threatened to kill the officer's wife and children. As a result, Simmons was also subsequently also arrested on suspicion of threatening an officer.
Simmons was eventually booked into the Santa Clara County Jail. Police also noted that Simmons is employed by the Mountain View Whisman School District. A Linked-In profile indicates there is a person with the same name working for the district as an "at-risk intervention specialist."
