Santa Barbara police officers patrolling the 1100 block of Mercedes Lane on Saturday, October 18 spotted a car they believed might be stolen in a shared parking lot.
Officers approached the car but they say the driver reversed the vehicle out of the stall and hit an officer, causing minor injuries.
An officer deployed a conducted energy device (commonly known as a Taser), which police say was effective. After a brief struggle police say the driver 24-year-old Kevin Benitez-Carbajal was taken into custody.
The injured officer was treated at Cottage Hospital and released. Benitez-Carbajal was booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail on a combination of misdemeanor and felony charges.
His bail has been set at $500,000.
