William Stephens, 66, of Point Loma was sentenced June 8 to 12 years in state prison after he had pleaded guilty to attempted murder for striking a San Diego police officer with his vehicle in 2025.
Stephens had admitted to driving his Jeep toward Officer Matthew Salisbury on Jan. 23, 2025, when several officers responded to his home after receiving a report of domestic violence.
From our report in May this year:
Prosecutors allege that as Officer Matthew Salisbury approached the home’s driveway, Stephens sped toward the officer, who attempted to evade the vehicle by moving behind a bush located near the driveway’s entrance. Stephens then turned his Jeep toward the bush, striking Salisbury, then crashed into a mailbox and another vehicle parked on the street, as 10News reported.
Stephens then exited the Jeep and was taken to the ground by multiple officers and handcuffed.
The San Diego police officer sustained fractures to one of his legs and a dislocated knee, according to evidence presented at a preliminary hearing last year.
Officers were called out after Stephens’ wife called 911 and stated her husband had threatened her and cut her hand with a knife. Stephens’ wife testified that she and her sister went to the home and encountered Stephens, who appeared extremely angry and demanded they leave. She said that after he grabbed a knife from a knife block in the kitchen, she approached Stephens, put her hand up in a defensive gesture when he held the knife too close to her, and attempted to grab the blade, cutting her hand in the process. The women then exited the house and called 911.
Also, we learned that, “Salisbury suffered fractures to one of his legs and a dislocated knee, according to evidence presented at a preliminary hearing last year.”
Along with the attempted-murder count, Stephens pleaded guilty to using a deadly weapon and inflicting great bodily injury on Salisbury, plus a domestic-violence count in regard to his wife.
News source: Point Loma – OB Monthly (SDU-T) / June 9, 2026
Good! Let him rot in jail.