Man shot by Merced police charged with assaulting an officer

A man shot by a Merced police officer last week was charged Thursday with assaulting a police officer.

Francisco Luis Davila, 55, pleaded not guilty to all charges Thursday afternoon before Judge Harry Jacobs in Merced Superior Court, said Amanda McCoy, a spokeswoman for the District Attorney’s Office.

He also was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, obstructing an officer and threatening to commit crimes with the intent to terrorize. Deputy Public Defender Anthony Green was assigned to represent him, according to court records.

Davila was shot Feb. 10 after refusing to give his name to the officer and becoming combative when she tried to pat him down, Chief Norm Andrade said last week at a news conference. Police said Davila retrieved a golf club from his shopping cart and threatened the officer before she fired two rounds from her service weapon. Andrade said a second officer arrived and “took the suspect to the ground and into custody.”

The officer, who’s been with the department six months, remains on paid administrative leave as the Merced Police Department works on the case. Capt. Bimley West said Thursday the shooting case will be sent to the Merced County District Attorney’s Office for review.

“This is a very serious case, and a lot of things have to be looked into,” West said.

Capt. Matt Williams estimated the department may be ready to release the officer’s name next week.

Davila was booked into jail on Monday after being treated at a Modesto hospital. He remains in jail on $155,500 bail.

He’s scheduled to be back in court on Wednesday.

Davila’s criminal history in Merced County lists numerous infractions from 2016 for taking a shopping cart from a business, according to jail records.

This story was originally published February 16, 2017 at 5:29 PM with the headline "Man shot by Merced police charged with assaulting an officer."