A 22-year-old FedEx driver was injured Tuesday when a 74-year-old Worland man jumped onto his moving truck and attacked him through the open window.
What set off the older man? The truck was kicking up too much dust on the road.
Maurice Behrnes, 74, pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor battery Thursday after attacking Juan Esquivel while he was delivering packages in the Worland area.
Behrnes was sentenced to three days in jail, with credit for three days served, and fined $500.
Esquivel, who attended Behrnes’s sentencing in Washakie Circuit Court, said what he considers a light sentence “infuriated me a little bit, mainly because Behrnes remained completely unrepentant for what he’d done."
“He was still playing the victim,” Esquivel told Cowboy State Daily. “I feel like he maybe should have stayed in there till Monday, at the very least, just to sit with it a little bit longer and realize that it was his fault for escalating that quickly.”
On Video
Esquivel was making deliveries on Chukar Drive, right off Wyoming Highway 789, around noon on Tuesday. One of his first deliveries was to Behrnes’ home, where they had a pleasant interaction.
“He was really nice,” Esquivel said. “He told me to have a good day and drive safe.”
After Esquivel made another delivery on Chukar Drive, he turned around and encountered Behrnes again. This time, the older man wasn’t so nice.
“He had walked out into the middle of the road with his arms crossed, so I started slowing down,” he said. “I rolled my window down halfway, and he immediately started cussing at me.”
Esquivel said that Behrnes had an issue with how much dust the delivery truck was kicking up. He immediately launched into a screed of profanity.
A camera installed in the delivery vehicle captured the entire incident.
“You don’t want dust in your f***king truck? I don’t like dust in my house,” Behrnes can be heard shouting on the video. "I bet you my neighbors feel the same way. Look at the f***ing dust cloud you just left. 30 f**ing mile per hour limit.”
When Esquivel tried to speak, Behrnes told him to “wait a f***ing minute” and claimed Esquivel was going over the speed limit and “drove through my driveway hauling f***ing ass.”
Esquivel twice told Behrnes he was going 30 mph. After the second time, Behrens called him a “smartass.”
Before Esquivel could say it a third time, Behrens had already jumped onto the side of the truck and reached his arms through the open window while the truck was moving.
“By that point, he started grabbing my head and punching and scratching,” Esquivel said. “I had stepped on the gas at this point because I didn't know what else to do.”
Behrnes, meanwhile, threatened he would “tear your f***ing head off.”
'Is This Worth Going To Jail?’
As Esquivel accelerated, Behrnes continued assaulting him, according to the video. He wrapped his arm around Esquivel’s head, tried punching him multiple times, and scratched at his arms.
“Is this worth going to jail over?” Esquivel said.
“Hey! Yeah,” Behrnes replied.
The two tussled for almost a minute while the vehicle was moving.
“He held on to the truck and was just grabbing at the steering wheel, grabbing my shirt, and grabbing at my head, scratching me,” Esquivel said. “I almost crashed multiple times.”
Behrnes told Esquivel he was “trying to get him to stop.”
Finally, when Esquivel started turning onto Highway 789, Behrnes “looked both ways to make sure the road was clear” and jumped off the truck.
Esquivel drove another mile before pulling over to call 911.
The Injured Party
When Capt. Christopher Hazen with the Washakie County Sheriff’s Office arrived at the scene, he noted that both Esquivel and Behrnes had sustained injuries.
According to an affidavit submitted to Washakie County Circuit Court, Esquivel had several scratches on his left forearm and a red/bruised area on his neck, left shoulder, and chest.
“My arms were scraped up, and I had some bruising around my neck and stuff,” Esquivel said. “It wasn't to the extent where I felt like I needed to go to a doctor.”
Behrnes had multiple injuries to his head, left hand, and right elbow that had been bleeding but weren’t life-threatening. Those had been sustained after he jumped off the moving truck, the affidavit says.
Behrnes denied medical treatment at the time but was later taken to the Washakie Medical Center for stitches.
According to the affidavit, Behrnes “began telling his side of the story” before anyone asked a question.
Hazen said his account mostly matched Esquivel’s “with the exception of a few important details that would favor (his) actions.”
When challenged on those details, Behrnes pushed back until he was informed that the entire incident had been captured on film.
Behrnes was issued a citation for battery. After getting medical clearance, he was taken to the Washakie County jail.
There was no evidence that Behrnes had any alcohol or drugs in his system at the time.
Still The Victim
When Behrnes appeared in Washakie County District Court on Thursday morning, he pleaded guilty to battery. However, he showed no remorse for his actions.
Esquivel, who attended the hearing, said that “sat wrong” with him.
“The judge asked him what his series of events were,” he said. “He was still playing the victim in it, saying that it was my fault for tearing up the driveway and causing the dust.”
Behrnes tried to bolster his case by saying Esquivel had been driving erratically on Chukar Drive, which Esquivel didn’t deny.
“He said I was erratically driving, swerving, and braking to get him off of the van, which I was,” he said. “He was also grabbing and punching me, so I didn't know really what else to do.”
Behrnes was sentenced to three days in jail, with credit for time served, and a $500 fine.
Esquivel got an apology, but not from Behrnes.
“His wife apologized on his behalf, and she was super nice about it,” he said. “I haven't heard anything from him directly. Apparently, he apologized to the cops quite a few times, but never anything towards me.”
Heart Drops
Esquivel decided not to press charges against Behrnes, but feels his sentence wasn’t severe enough for his actions that day and a stubborn lack of remorse.
“The prosecutor asked me what I wanted done and everything, and I told them to do whatever they thought was right,” he said. “It didn't really feel like he understood his consequences that much with the way that he was still saying that it was my fault.”
Leslie Goodwin, Esquivel’s mother, was appalled by what happened. She agrees that Behrnes got off easy.
“I’m pretty shaken by it,” she said. “I’m his mom, but I don’t think the punishment fits the crime. It’s good they had that video.”
Esquivel, meanwhile, went back to business as usual, but with more apprehension than before.
“I still plan on delivering for FedEx, but I won't lie that if my heart doesn't drop every time I see someone come outside while I'm delivering to them,” he said.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
