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Tag: William John Hanley

  • Man with axe in Pacific Beach library gets two years prison time

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    SAN DIEGO – A two-year term in state prison was handed down on Nov. 19 to the man who brought an axe into a Pacific Beach library and used it to chop up books, furniture, and computer equipment.

    No one was injured.

    A judge ordered William John Hanley, 54, to pay for the damages, but the amount will be set in a future hearing in San Diego Superior Court. A status hearing for the restitution was set for Jan. 20, 2026.

    The May 8 incident at the Pacific Beach/Taylor Library was bizarre, but Hanley deliberately only attacked books and equipment, with injuries to no one other than psychological harm. People moved out of his way and he seemed determined to hack at the property without giving an explanation.

    He refused to put down the axe after he left the library that day, however, and an officer shot him twice outside, in the 4300 block of Dawes Street in Pacific Beach.

    San Diego Superior Court Judge Dwayne Moring denied probation and gave him credit for spending 191 days in jail. He fined him $370.

    Hanley pleaded guilty to exhibiting a weapon in a threatening manner.

    The other charges Hanley faced were dismissed; they included assault on a police officer, felony vandalism, and exhibiting an axe to a police officer.

    The judge ordered the axe to be destroyed.


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  • Man who swung axe in Pacific Beach library pleads guilty

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    SAN DIEGO – A man who brought an axe into a Pacific Beach library pleaded guilty on October 21 to exhibiting a weapon in a threatening manner.

    No one in the library was injured, but people were badly frightened.

    William John Hanley, 54, also admitted to personal use of a weapon when he entered the Pacific Beach/Taylor Library on Cass Street on the afternoon of May 8 and began chopping up books, tables, and chairs.

    He has agreed to accept a two-year sentence in state prison, said Deputy District Attorney Shane Waller. Hanley may also be ordered to pay restitution to the library for books and furniture he damaged.

    A San Diego Police officer shot and wounded Hanley in the 4300 block of Dawes Street in after he left the library, but he refused to drop the axe. The weapon was recovered on a sidewalk after police shot him multiple times.

    The other charges Hanley faced included assault on a police officer, felony vandalism, and exhibiting an axe to a police officer, and an employee of the Pacific Beach/Taylor Library was dismissed after he pleaded guilty to exhibiting a weapon dangerously.

    He also struck at computers and power cords. People moved out of his way during the incident. No person was hit by the axe.

    Hanley remains in the George Bailey Detention Facility without bail. San Diego Superior Court Judge Dwayne Moring set sentencing for November 19.

    The Pacific Beach/Taylor library branch opened in 1997 and is named after Earl and Birdie Taylor following a generous donation from the Taylor family, library supporters, and early real estate developers in Pacific Beach, according to its website.

    It is within walking distance of the beach. It was designed by architect Manuel Oncina. A grand piano is inside.


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