PUBLIC SAFETY FACILITY — A hearing has been scheduled to determine if two Arizona men suspected of brutally beating a Santa Monica resident should be extradited to Los Angeles County to face attempted murder charges, police said.
Bryan Scott Hale, 24, of Tempe, Ariz. and Brett Davis, 25, of Fountain Hills, Ariz. are fighting extradition and are expected to go before a judge on Oct. 26, said SMPD Sgt. Richard Lewis.
The judge will determine if there is enough evidence to proceed with the case. If so, the suspects will be transported to Los Angeles County via a private extradition company, Lewis said.
The men were arrested last Friday by Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies and are being held on $1,030,000 bonds.
“It isn’t unusual for people to fight extradition,” Lewis said. “Perhaps they’re doing it so they can have more time to raise bail.”
Typically courts look only at the extradition documents to see if they are in order and do not consider the merits of the charge.
The assault took place in the early morning hours of Sept. 22 on the 3100 block of Santa Monica Boulevard near Busby’s bar. The victim, a 45-year-old movie producer, was working out around 2:20 a.m. with hand weights and sparring gloves when two men approached him from behind and beat him with his weights.
The victim suffered a collapsed skull, several brain bleeds, a broken jaw and back fractures, according to a press released issued by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department.
While the victim is expected to survive, doctors said long-term effects from the beating are very possible, sheriff's deputies added.
Santa Monica police released surveillance video footage which showed two men running away from the scene shortly after the beating occurred. The footage was broadcast on local television news stations and fliers were posted at the corner of Berkeley Street and Santa Monica Boulevard asking for the public’s help in identifying those responsible.
Santa Monica detectives were able to identify one of the suspects involved and notified authorities in Arizona, who conducted a surveillance operation and ultimately arrested Hale and Davis.
Police said the men were in the Los Angeles area working for an unidentified moving company.
kevinh@www.smdp.com
