An Arizona man suspected of hitting and biting a firefighter who tried to help him after a rollover crash south of Hesperus was charged Friday with felony assault and obstruction of a police officer.
Joe Benally, 20, faces up to six years in prison if convicted of felony assault.
The incident occurred about 3:45 p.m. Feb. 23 in the 20600 block of La Plata Highway (Colorado Highway 140), about four miles south of Hesperus.
Benally was a passenger in the car that rolled over. The occupants initially tried to leave the scene, but firefighters and the Colorado State Patrol kept them there.
The Colorado State Patrol took the driver into custody on suspicion of drunken driving. Benally and one other occupant were sitting on the side of the road when a firefighter attempted to check on them.
That is when Benally started fighting with the firefighter and bit him on the finger, causing his hand to bleed, according to the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office.
Benally also fought with a sheriff’s deputy and state patrol trooper when they tried to control him and place him in handcuffs, Bender said.
A deputy took Benally to Mercy Regional Medical Center for observation, and once there, he told three deputies he knew where they lived and would do a drive-by shooting of their houses, the Sheriff’s Office said.
He is free on a personal recognizance bail, meaning he didn’t have to pay anything but agrees to show up for scheduled court appearances.
shane@durangoherald.com
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