A San Clemente man is facing a long list of felony charges after allegedly driving a car into a crowd of pedestrians outside a popular East Hollywood nightclub on Saturday, July 19, injuring dozens of people and prompting a citywide investigation.
Fernando Ramirez, 29, was charged with 37 counts of attempted murder and 37 counts of assault with a deadly weapon following the crash outside The Vermont Hollywood, a music venue located on West Santa Monica Boulevard near Vermont Avenue. The incident occurred shortly after 1 a.m., just as a reggae hip-hop event had ended and patrons were exiting the venue.
According to investigators, Ramirez had been removed from the venue earlier in the night for fighting and was removed again later for intoxicated and disruptive behavior. After being ejected a second time, police say he got into a Nissan Versa and intentionally drove onto the crowded sidewalk, striking multiple people and colliding with food carts that had been set up near the entrance…