Cattle Incident Leads to Arrest
September 13, 2011 – Authorities arrested Dustin Aldridge of Carter on Sunday after he fired a shotgun near a Beckham County Sheriff’s Deputy while reportedly shooting at his own cattle, according to a report by Deputy Nick Crauthers.
Deputies took Aldridge, 39, into custody on charges of possession of a sawed off shotgun, possession of narcotics, possession of drug paraphernalia, willfully refusing to keep domestic animals enclosed, firing a weapon in a public place, reckless conduct with a weapon, and using a firearm while committing a felony.
Deputy Crauthers responded Sunday afternoon at 3:23 p.m. to a report of cattle out on County Road 1260, southeast of Carter. Beckham County Sheriff’s Deputies had made several trips to the area over the previous few months regarding cattle being out. The day before, Saturday, a motorist had an accident involving one of Aldridge’s cattle, according to reports.
When Crauthers arrived, he found a cow and calf out and put them up, then he drove to Aldridge’s residence and issued a citation. After initially refusing to sign the citation, Aldridge complied, and he said he would just shoot the cattle the next time they got loose, according to reports.
When Crauthers drove away at approximately 4 p.m., he noticed that the same cow and calf he’d put up earlier were out again. As he approached them in his cruiser, he heard a loud shotgun blast behind his vehicle.
Aldridge was in the driver’s seat of a pickup that was near the bumper of the deputy’s cruiser, with a shotgun barrel pointed out of the driver’s side, according to reports.
“I was in fear for my life and believed at that time Dustin was attempting to shoot me,” Crauthers said.
The Deputy quickly drove west about 100 yards, parked in a defensive position, and drew his sidearm. Aldridge soon drove the pickup towards Crauthers, who shouted commands several times for Aldridge to stop. When he finally stopped, Crauthers took Aldridge into custody.
A search of Aldridge’s pickup revealed a sawed-off Springfield 20 gauge shotgun and a glass pipe commonly associated with narcotics use. Residue on the pipe tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine, according to reports.
The case was turned over to the Beckham County District Attorney’s Office.