By Kristina Davis
The San Diego Union-Tribune
SAN DIEGO — A mother who was shot by an off-duty police officer in an apparent road rage incident in March pleaded not guilty Wednesday to felony child endangerment and five misdemeanors.
Rachel Silva, 28, was ordered by a judge to surrender herself on Sunday to Vista jail, where she will be booked and then released to continue treatment at a long-term drug-rehabilitation facility.
Oceanside police said Silva’s blood-alcohol level was nearly twice the legal limit when she and her then-8-year-old son were shot in a confrontation with San Diego police Officer Frank White. She also had marijuana in her system.
The Attorney General’s Office, which took over her case in April, has also charged Silva with two drunken driving charges, possession of marijuana, driving on a suspended license and driving on a license suspended for a previous DUI conviction. She faces up to six years in prison if convicted of the felony.
Silva said little during her arraignment in downtown San Diego Superior Court on Wednesday. Her eyes appeared red-rimmed and she wore a blouse that fell open at the sleeves, revealing a long surgical scar from her gunshot wounds to the arm.
A preliminary hearing has been set for Sept. 9.
Her attorney, Michael Pancer, declined to comment after the arraignment.
Police say White shot Silva twice in the arm and her son in the knee in the parking lot of a Lowe’s store in Oceanside on March 15.
Silva reportedly followed White into the parking lot, where she sideswiped his car after he displayed a handgun.
The Attorney General’s Office concluded after reviewing more than 2,500 pages of documents that the incident didn’t warrant charging Silva with assault with a deadly weapon.
The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office is still handling the investigation into White. A decision has not yet been reached whether to charge him in the incident, said the agency’s spokesman, Paul Levikow.
White has since returned to duty in an administrative position after being on paid leave for about a month.
A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Silva’s son against White, the city of San Diego, the San Diego Police Department and the police chief; Silva has filed a similar claim.
Copyright 2008 The San Diego Union-Tribune