Rigby man facing battery charge after deputies say he threw armed 84-year-old to ground
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RIGBY — A Rigby man was arrested after deputies responded to a physical confrontation that occurred when another man drew a pistol in the presence of a teenager and a dog.
According to a news release from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Austin Farmer, 43, had been arrested and charged with felony aggravated battery.
On Friday, deputies responded to the 4500 block of 250 North after one of Farmer’s family members called and said a man had shot at another man’s dog, according to court documents.
While en route, deputies learned the names of the two people involved, which included Farmer and an 84-year-old man. They also learned the older man was the one with the gun.
At the scene, deputies found that both men had been separated and located the caller, a 16-year-old, who told them where the older man had gone.
During the search for the 84-year-old, another deputy spoke with Farmer, who was being escorted away from the older man’s home. The document states that Farmer mentioned putting a bullet in the 84-year-old man’s head.
The 84-year-old man was found at a neighbor’s, where he was being tended to due to him bleeding from the elbow and hands.
The deputy reported seeing that the 84-year-old man had a .22-caliber pistol in a holster on him, and after securing the pistol, other deputies waited with him as an ambulance arrived.
The neighbor’s side
A neighbor, who told deputies that he knew both men, was mowing his lawn when he saw Farmer confront the 84-year-old.
He said he saw the two interact for only a second, but said he saw Farmer throw the 84-year-old to the ground.
The neighbor tried to separate the two and recalled that Farmer threatened to kill the other man multiple times.
The deputy asked the neighbor whether he had ever seen the older man draw his pistol, and he said no.
The 84-year-old man’s side
The older man told deputies he had pulled out his firearm at Farmer’s dog, but never at Farmer.
He said this was because of his past with the animal, saying it had bitten him before. While he was not bitten that day of the incident, the 84-year-old said that he had locked eyes with the dog and it began to snarl at him.
He estimated that the dog was 5 feet away and Farmer’s 14-year-old son was 15 feet away on a four-wheeler.
The older man reached for his pistol. He said the dog began to walk away toward the family member but turned around and approached the older man.
That is when he drew the weapon, and Farmer’s son yelled at him to put the pistol away.
The older man said that he had told Farmer that he would shoot the dog if it attacked him again. He admitted to throwing a rock at the dog after it had come after him earlier that week.
Medical personnel said the 84-year-old man might have a fractured elbow and concussion from hitting his head. The 84-year-old said he was experiencing confusion, which was not normal for him.
Farmer and family members’ side
Farmer’s family members, including the one who called deputies, told deputies that the teenager on the four-wheeler was going to retrieve the dog after it got out and wandered onto a nearby property.
The boy said the dog was following him on the four-wheeler when they passed the 84-year-old man, and the dog did nothing. He said the older man had drawn his gun, but wasn’t able to tell if the gun was aimed at the ground or at the dog.
When asked if the gun had been aimed at him, he said that it hadn’t been. Asked if the gun had been fired, he said that it wasn’t.
The teen said that when he saw the gun was drawn, he told the man to put it away. After it was holstered, Farmer’s son drove away with the dog in tow.
The 16-year-old caller said he did not see the incident, but he saw Farmer and the other man shoving each other and overheard the conversation.
He recalled the 84-year-old saying that he would do it again any day, and that Farmer had begun to walk away when the older man followed him and reached for the gun.
This allegedly prompted Farmer to throw the 84-year-old to the ground.
After deputies detained and handcuffed Farmer, they read him his Miranda rights, and he answered their questions.
Farmer said he and the 84-year-old had had problems in the past, and it culminated when the older man threw a rock at the family dog. He also spoke about the threat of shooting the dog.
He said that as he was approaching his son, he heard him tell the 84-year-old to put the gun away and could see that the older man had the gun raised, not pointed at the ground.
Farmer said he made sure the boy was away from the situation, and they were chest to chest with each other.
Farmer admitted to threatening the other man, telling him, “If you ever pull a gun on my son again, I will put a bullet in your head.”
Before the neighbor got there, the 84-year-old had fallen to the ground. When asked how the other man had gotten those injuries, Farmer said that he never touched him.
The deputy noted that Farmer’s version of the incident did not match the others’. The neighbor and the victim both said Farmer had caused the older man’s fall.
Case in court
Farmer is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on Oct. 15 at 1:30 p.m. before Magistrate Judge Trent Belnap.
No attorney is listed for Farmer.
Although Farmer has been accused of a crime, that does not necessarily mean he committed it. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
If he is found guilty, he faces up to 15 years in prison.