Bend man held in gun-pointing Hwy. 20 road rage case

(Update: Comment from sergeant on Hazelton’s alleged actions with gun; charges listed by jail)

A 22-year-old Bend man accused of pointing a pistol out his SUV window at another driver on Highway 20 in the Tumalo area during a road rage incident was arrested Thursday after a guns-drawn traffic stop, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said.

Deputies responded around 4:30 p.m. to 911 calls about a white Chevy Suburban heading east on the highway in the area of Dayton Road. The callers said the driver, later identified as Hawkins Mclean Hazelton, was pointing a gun at other drivers, Sgt. Kent Vander Kamp said.

An investigation determined that Hazelton was driving recklessly “and began challenging other drivers to fight with hand gestures, physical threats and dangerous driving, all to intimidate the other drivers,” Vander Kamp said in a news release.

At one point, the sergeant said, Hazelton began pointing a 9mm semi-automatic pistol out of the Suburban’s windows toward another driver, though no shots were fired and no one was injured. Vander Kamp said he allegedly “waved the gun around and pointed it at another driver who was in front of him.”

A Bend police officer spotted the SUV on Highway 20 approaching Bend. Deputies and officers conducted a guns-drawn “high-risk” traffic stop at Highway 20 and the Old Bend-Redmond Highway. Vander Kamp said the highway was closed briefly during the stop for the safety of passing drivers and deputies.

Hazelton was detained around 4:40 p.m. and eventually was arrested and taken to the Deschutes County Jail. He was held on two counts each of recklessly endangering and reckless driving, as well as first-degree menacing and unlawful use of a weapon. His bail totaled $35,000, jail records showed.

Deputies also were helped at the scene by Oregon State Police troopers and ODOT.

It was Central Oregon’s third alleged road rage incident of the month.