Isla Vista massacre

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The Isla Vista massacre was the intentional vehicular assault of several pedestrians on February 23, 2001 at about 11:00 pm in the community of Isla Vista, California near the University of California, Santa Barbara campus. The perpetrator was UCSB student David Attias who drove his 1991 Saab into five pedestrians, killing four and critically injuring a fifth. The assault location was near 6500 Sabado Tarde Road.^[1]

After the incident, Attias was shouting "I am the Angel of Death" according to witnesses at the scene. ^[2]

Attias was charged with four counts of murder, four counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and five counts of felony driving under the influence. Attias was later found to be legally insane.^[3] Attias had been known for erratic behavior, including stalking of another student.^[4]

This case received additional media attention because Attias is the son of prominent Hollywood film producer Daniel Attias.

[edit] Victims

Four people were killed in the assault: UCSB students 20-year-old Nicholas Bourdakis and Christoper Divis, 27-year-old San Francisco resident Elie Israel, and 20-year-old Santa Barbara City College student Ruth Levy. Albert Arthur Levy, 27, brother to Ruth, was critically injured. His injuries consisted of crushed legs and a severely battered head.^[5]^[6]