STATE OF VERMONT

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

VERMONT STATE POLICE

 

CASE#: 23A2007008

RANK / TROOPER FULL NAME: Trooper Justin Wagner

STATION: VSP St. Albans

CONTACT#: 802-524-5993

 

DATE/TIME: About 11:35 a.m. Friday, Dec. 1, 2023

INCIDENT LOCATION: Highgate Road in the vicinity of Woods Hill Road, Highgate, VT

 

ACCUSED NO. 1: Jeremy Patterson

AGE: 22

CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Highgate, VT

VIOLATION: Reckless endangerment

 

ACCUSED NO. 2: Eric Martin

AGE: 37

CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Enosburg, VT

VIOLATION: Careless and negligent operation

 

 

SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:

Two people are facing charges related to a verbal dispute that escalated into a road-rage incident and the firing of a gun Friday, Dec. 1, 2023, in Highgate.

 

No one was injured in the incident, which occurred at about 11:35 a.m. on Highgate Road, also known as Vermont Route 207, in the vicinity of the intersection with Woods Hill Road.

 

Through investigation, the Vermont State Police learned that several individuals had been involved in a dispute at a convenience store in Highgate that continued when the parties left the gas station in two vehicles. At one point, the operator of one of the vehicles, Eric Martin, 37, of Enosburg, braked in the middle of the road and initiated contact with the second vehicle. Evidence indicates that at that time, a passenger in the second vehicle, Jeremy Patterson, 22, of Highgate, fired at least one gunshot into the ground.

 

Martin received a citation on a charge of careless and negligent operation. Patterson was cited to answer one count of reckless endangerment. Both men are scheduled to appear for arraignment at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 16, 2024, in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in St. Albans.

 

Route 207 was closed for about an hour following the incident while investigators processed the scene. The Vermont State Police was assisted by the Department of Fish and Wildlife during the investigation.

 

No additional information is available at this time. The affidavit of probable cause will be filed with the court and made public following the suspects’ arraignment. Members of the media should call the Criminal Court Clerk’s Office to confirm details of the hearings.

 

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