Nola
November 1, 2015
New Orleans police have identified a suspect in the Frenchmen Street beating that left a California man paralyzed from the neck down.
Police said they are looking for 30-year-old Christopher Smith, who faces a charge of second-degree battery in the Oct. 15 incident that left Doug David, of La Jolla, in a hospital bed.
David, 64, told police he was crossing the intersection of Frenchmen and Decatur streets around 11 p.m. Oct. 15 when “he was almost struck” by a black vehicle, according to NOPD. David threw a beer can, hitting the roof of the vehicle, police said. A men exited the car and hit David in the face and head area, David told police.
A witness said the attacker fled in a small black car with Louisiana plate XQT199, police said.
Medical emergency responders found David on the ground, unable to feel in most of his body below the neck.