A Morgan Hill man accused of assaulting a police officer,
resisting arrest and reckless driving pleaded not guilty to his
alleged crimes.
A Morgan Hill man accused of assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and reckless driving pleaded not guilty to his alleged crimes.
Joel Barnes, 40, evaded Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputies three times last summer as they attempted to arrest him on warrants for felony false imprisonment and assault, and ran from Morgan Hill police on one occasion, prosecutors said.
Barnes provoked deputies into shooting at him while he escaped their capture by driving his truck at them, police said. The chase ended two days later, when deputies cornered Barnes at a home in Watsonville. Barnes again ran from police but a SWAT team and canine officers found him hiding inside nearby bushes.
Barnes also faces a litany of lesser charges, which range from misdemeanor battery to various weapons-related felonies, including possession of a machine gun, carrying a concealed dagger and possession of a weapon commonly known as a sap. His misdemeanor charges will trail the felony charges, including the most severe offense, the assault on a police officer, prosecutors said.
The charges carry more than 20 years of possible prison time.
The number and sheer variety of charges Barnes faces delayed his plea for several months.
Barnes also served 11 years for voluntary manslaughter after killing the mother of his child with a single stab wound to the chest in 1995.
Barnes’ preliminary hearing is scheduled for 8:45 a.m. July 6 in Department 24 at the Hall of Justice in San Jose.
