A man driving a SUV on the interstate rammed a USPS mail truck, passed the truck on the shoulder, then braked to a total stop, almost causing a multiple-vehicle crash, according to allegations filed by a local prosecutor.
The driver of the SUV is alleged to be David Brent Hagemayer, who faces a felony charge of criminal endangerment and misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and littering.
The charges, pending in Sixth District Court as of Dec. 12, stem from an investigation that began when a state trooper was dispatched for a report of a reckless driver. A mailman had reported that a silver Mitsubishi Outlander with a California license plate was tailgating him on Interstate 90 near mile marker 347 in Park County.
Unable to pass, the Outlander/SUV hit the mail truck from the rear, according to an affidavit filed by the Deputy Park County Attorney Stephen Potenberg.
“After the Defendant [Hagenmayer] was unable to pass [the mailman], Defendant passed [the mailman] on the left shoulder, causing [the mailman] and an adjacent semi-truck driver to abruptly swerve to the right, and almost causing a multi-car crash,” reads the affidavit.
“Defendant immediately pulled in front of [the mailman] and immediately slammed on his brakes going from 70 mph to zero. As [the mailman] and Defendant were stopped on the interstate, cars and trucks were flying past at high rates of speed trying to avoid the stopped vehicles.”
It’s alleged that when the mailman tried to pass the SUV, Hagenmayer repeatedly swerved the SUV in front of the mail truck to prevent the truck from passing.
“After Defendant would increase his speed to highway speed, he would again slam on his brakes, reducing his speed to zero on the interstate,” reads the affidavit. “[The mailman] was unable to pass or evade Defendant. This occurred at least five time.”
As the mailman was trying to pass, Hagenmayer threw objects at the mail truck, according to the allegations.
“These objects included a lit cigarette,” reads the affidavit.
The mail truck eventually began to pass the SUV, whereupon Hagenmayer allegedly swerved into the mail truck at low speed. The SUV reportedly made contact with the mail truck’s front fender.
“[The mailman] emergency braked to a complete stop to avoid a more serious collision,” reads the affidavit.
A witness called 911 to report a silver Mitsubishi SUV with California plates harassing the mail truck, and she had to swerve to get around them, according to the county attorney’s office.
