BRIEFLY IN PUBLIC SAFETY

Area man found guilty of attempted murder

A 27-year-old Costa Mesa man has been convicted of attempted murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, felony hit-and-run, and falsely reporting a crime for running down a former high school football coach with his BMW in January, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Morteza Bakhtiari could be sent to state prison for more than 15 years and lose his driver’s license for life when he is sentenced June 1 at the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana, prosecutors said.

The incident occurred at 11:30 p.m. Jan. 19 in the parking lot of an Aliso Viejo restaurant, where John Royston, 43, and his companions were standing as Bakhtiari sped by, Deputy Dist. Atty. Scott Simmons said.

The group yelled at Bakhtiari to slow down, and Royston tossed liquid from a cup into one of the car’s windows, Simmons said. Bakhtiari then hit a Mercedes-Benz with his car.

One of the witnesses in the car with Bakhtiari testified that Bakhtiari turned his car around and said, “They made me mess up my car, so I am going to mess them up,” Simmons said. Bakhtiari then ran down Royston, sending him flying over the hood of his BMW.

Bakhtiari fled the scene and then later falsely reported to Costa Mesa police that his car had been stolen.

Royston suffered severe head injuries and slipped into a coma for two months, Simmons said. Royston remembered nothing of the accident when he awoke and has suffered permanent brain damage.

Former assemblyman sentenced for DUI

Bruce Nestande, a former Orange County supervisor and state assemblyman, was sentenced to jail and probation Tuesday, but he can apply to spend six months under house arrest, prosecutors said.

If the application to avoid jail time is not accepted, Nestande will need to report to the Orange County Jail by 7 p.m. June 22, Orange County district attorney’s office spokeswoman Farrah Emami said.

Nestande pleaded guilty to charges of drunk driving, changing his plea at the arraignment, prosecutors said. If it had gone to trial, Nestande could have been sentenced to five years in jail, prosecutors said.

On Aug. 10, Nestande hit a parked car in front of his Lido Island home after leaving a Newport Beach restaurant where he had been drinking, authorities said.

Nestande was charged with misdemeanor hit-and-run and driving under the influence, and also felony insurance fraud after filing a fake claim, stating that the damage to his car happened at a later date, prosecutors said.

Although pleading guilty to all the charges, sentencing for the fraud charge has been postponed until Nestande completes his probation, prosecutors said.

Nestande was ordered to pay $14,000 for damage to the parked car, prosecutors said.