A Santa Clara County jury today convicted 37-year-old Union City resident Jeffrey Thomas Choy of attempted murder for firing at a Mountain View police officer from about an arm’s length during a July 16, 2022 traffic stop. The verdict capped a three-week trial and followed two days of jury deliberations.
The officer, a five-year veteran working an overtime DUI shift, was hit in the left forearm, and a second round was stopped by his bullet-resistant vest. He was treated and released from a hospital the same day and has since returned to duty, according to NBC Bay Area. Prosecutors say the shooting was recorded on the officer’s body-worn camera, and that footage helped identify the shooter.
Prosecutors identified the defendant as Choy and said he was prohibited from possessing firearms because of an earlier attempted robbery conviction in Alameda County. They also said he had been out on bail after a March 2022 gun-possession arrest, as reported by CBS San Francisco. The charges filed against him included multiple gun counts in addition to the attempted murder charge.
Manhunt and Arrest
After the shooting, Choy drove away, crashed his vehicle near Higdon Avenue, and then fled on foot, hiding in a laundry room for several hours before leaving the city, according to a 2022 release from the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. Investigators later tracked him to a Black Bear Diner in Fremont with help from an Alameda County Sheriff surveillance plane. U.S. Marshals and Mountain View detectives arrested him outside the restaurant after a brief foot chase.
Trial and Charges
Jurors found Choy guilty of attempted murder and two sets of gun charges, three felony counts in each set, after the three-week trial, with deliberations lasting two days, according to The Mercury News. The attempted-murder conviction, combined with the weapons counts, leaves him facing a possible sentence of up to 50 years to life in prison.
Prosecutors and Body-Cam Footage
“This verdict reminds us that every time a law enforcement officer starts their shift, they are risking their lives to protect us and our families,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement after the verdict. Deputy District Attorney Marisa McKeown said the outcome offered some closure and that body-worn camera footage from the incident will be used in officer training, The Mercury News reported.
Local Impact
The July 2022 shooting rattled the Peninsula. Mountain View police said it was the department’s first line-of-duty shooting in about 20 years. The agency released still photographs from the officer’s body camera but declined to publish the full video at the time, according to the Mountain View Voice. Community leaders and law enforcement agencies from around the Bay Area assisted in the search that led to Choy’s arrest.
What’s Next
Sentencing has not yet been scheduled. Prosecutors say Choy faces life in prison if the terms are imposed consecutively, and the court is expected to set a sentencing date in the coming months, according to reporting by NBC Bay Area. Defense attorneys did not immediately comment in court today.
