Man pleads not guilty to slashing CHP officer
A man accused of slashing a California Highway Patrol officer’s neck near an Interstate 80 on- ramp in San Francisco pleaded not guilty Tuesday to attempted murder.
With dozens of uniformed CHP officers sitting in the Superior Court gallery, Noel Corpuz made his second appearance in the Feb. 2 attack on Officer Andre Sirenko.
Sirenko, who has since been discharged from the hospital and is in good condition, had been investigating a report of a pedestrian walking on the on- ramp near Essex Street in the Rincon Hill neighborhood when he and his partner encountered Corpuz, who was apparently homeless, near a tent encampment along the roadway just after 10 a. m.
Authorities said Corpuz suddenly lashed out, slashing Sirenko across his neck and left arm with a knife before fleeing.
Public Defender Jeff Adachi, who represented Corpuz on Tuesday, said outside court that there were reports of an officer using a stun gun on Corpuz, or pointing something that looked like a firearm, “and that is when we believe the stabbing occurred.”
Corpuz, who is originally from Hawaii and requested a Tagalog translator at his next court date, had gotten into trouble for minor drug offenses, Adachi said, but had no history of violence. Court records show he was arrested in 2011 on suspicion of possessing a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia, but the charges were dismissed after Corpuz completed a drug diversion program.
“A person doesn’t just wake up one morning and decide to stab somebody,” Adachi said. “Without any history of violence, it seems very odd and unusual that suddenly there would be an unprovoked attack on, in this case, a CHP officer.”
While court and jail records identify Corpuz as being 44 or 45 years old, respectively, Adachi said he was actually 43.
Following the stabbing, Corpuz was arrested by San Francisco police officers who reported finding him inside a nearby Wells Fargo branch. Police said he tried to take an officer’s gun from a holster, and he has been charged with threatening an executive officer.
A black backpack and a large knife believed to have been used in the stabbing were found in the bank parking lot, police said.
CHP Commander Christopher Sherry said he could not comment on whether a stun gun was used on Corpuz before the stabbing. Sherry was one of the dozens of officers to attend the arraignment.
“This event just really shocked us deeply,” Sherry said outside court. “To see one of our fellow officers severely injured, almost killed, we wanted to be here in force. We have a lot of CHP officers, sergeants, lieutenants and captains all here to support our officer. They call this the Hall of Justice, and we’re here to see justice served.”
Sherry said that as Sirenko recovers, the agency itself is recovering.
“Especially the officers who were on scene, to see their friend bleeding ... it’s a very helpless feeling,” he said. “We’re just so happy that the injuries weren’t more severe than they are.”
Corpuz is being held on $ 5 million bail. He returns to court Feb. 24 for a bail hearing.