Oroville, Calif. – A Fairfield man was sentenced to state prison by the Butte County Superior Court for driving into five pedestrians on a Chico street last Halloween, despite prison officials recommending probation.

Kaijuan Julian, 21, of Fairfield, was sentenced to nine years in state prison following his plea to five counts of assault with his vehicle in Chico during the early morning hours of Nov. 1, 2025, court officials say. Records show all five victims sustained moderate to severe injuries.

Judge Kimberly Merrifield had previously requested a diagnostic evaluation of Julian from the California Department of Corrections to determine whether prison or probation was the appropriate sentence in this matter.

Officials say Julian was sent to prison, where a formal evaluation was completed and the prison evaluation recommended that Julian be placed on probation, primarily based on his age and lack of criminal history.

Judge Merrifield disagreed with this recommendation.

“Sometimes the circumstances of the offense outweigh the lack of criminal history,” Merrifield said.

The judge says she did consider Julian’s age when setting a lower term of nine years, as opposed to the maximum term of 11 years.

Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said Julian’s charges stemmed from a crash in which Julian drove his vehicle into a group of people walking to their car after attending Halloween festivities in downtown Chico.

Officials say Julian had just been involved in a physical altercation with some of the partygoers moments earlier and the group was walking to their own vehicle in the 700 block of West Second Avenue when the defendant drove his Tesla at a high rate of speed, crossing into the opposite lane of traffic to ram the individuals with his vehicle.

Authorities say Julian then turned his vehicle around and sped toward the group again, prompting them to hide behind parked cars in the area to avoid further injuries.

The Chico Police Department says Julian then fled the area in his vehicle and was later located by their officers a few blocks away. Officers on scene determined that Julian was intoxicated.

The five victims, who ranged in age from 17 to 22 years old, were taken to the hospital for treatment. One female victim had her leg, pelvis, jaw and teeth broken during the assault.

That victim and another addressed the court at sentencing, each describing the ongoing physical, emotional and financial impact this event has had on their lives. Both described the horror they experienced after being struck by a vehicle and then dragged out of the road by bystanders as Julian turned his car around to attempt to hit them again.

Ramsey agreed with Judge Merrifield’s decision in this matter, which led to a prison sentence despite the diagnostic evaluation’s results.

“The Court’s observations that the circumstances of this crime were so egregious that a prison sentence was warranted was the right result in this matter, both in providing a semblance of justice to the five individuals who were struck by Julian with his car, as well as to our community as a whole,” Ramsey said.