SANDY, May 10, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A 29-year-old man was charged in an apparent road rage incident in Sandy.
Jake Gardner was traveling south on Highland Drive at 9400 South on Tuesday afternoon when a woman in a convertible pulled in front of him, say charging documents, filed by an officer of the Sandy City Police Department.
Gardner followed the woman to 9400 South and 1300 East, and allegedly approached her with a knife when she stopped at a red light.
“Gardner got out of his vehicle, with a butterfly knife in his pocket. He approached the driver” and cursed at her, and called her by a derogatory term, saying “you shouldn’t drive so aggressively! He pulled the knife out of his pocket, spun it around three to four times before he used the knife to make a 3- to 4-foot scratch in the driver’s side rear quarter panel before he walked back to his vehicle.”
Gardner was located at his residence, in West Jordan, and was taken into custody.
“Post Miranda, Jake did state he got out of his vehicle and approached the driver of V1 (vehicle 1). Jake said he suffers from Tourette’s and uses the knife, which is a training butterfly knife with no sharp blade, as a tool to help him through stressful times. Jake said he verbally interacted with the driver of V1 before he walked back to his vehicle.”
Gardner was charged with aggravated assault, a third-degree felony, and criminal mischief with loss of $500 to $1,499, a class A misdemeanor.
Gardner was later released on conditions including he return for court appointments and commit no crimes.
