A Halloween night confrontation outside a crowded Cheyenne bar ended with a man allegedly hitting a pedestrian with his car, then getting out and firing five gunshots as bystanders scrambled for cover.
Now, 26-year-old Latrell Grayson of Cheyenne faces charges of aggravated assault and battery and reckless endangering after the Saturday night disturbance outside the Peppermill Bar on Stillwater Avenue.
Grayson was arrested Monday and was scheduled to make his initial appearance Tuesday in Laramie County Circuit Court before Judge T.J. Forwood. He is represented by defense attorney Jose Bustos.
The Cheyenne Police Department said officers were called to the Peppermill Bar at 1618 Stillwater Ave. around 11:15 p.m. after 911 callers reported that someone had been struck by a vehicle and several shots were fired.
By the time officers arrived, people were hiding behind parked vehicles.
A probable-cause affidavit describes a crowded parking lot, cellphone footage of a car accelerating into a pedestrian and gunshots that struck the ground nearby.
Despite the gunfire, nobody was reported injured.
Five Gunshots
Witnesses showed officers cellphone video of a white passenger car accelerating out of the bar's parking lot and striking a male pedestrian.
The driver then attempted to leave.
The man who was hit did not appear injured, refused medical attention and denied any involvement in the incident, police said, but several people who witnessed what happened weren't ready to let the driver leave.
Video showed a group of bystanders chasing the car for a short distance before it stopped. The driver got out, fired several rounds from a handgun and fled.
CPD officer Colten Frost wrote that he could see "the dust displaced from the impacts of the bullets being fired into the ground."
Investigators later recovered five spent 9mm Blazer shell casings from the road.
The affidavit also says no victims wanted to speak with investigators, and nobody reported seeing the gun pointed directly at another person.
Frost wrote that the bar had been "highly populated" and when officers arrived, individuals were "hiding behind vehicles in fear of the situation."
Vodka Tossed From Car
Grayson didn't get far, according to police.
As additional officers responded to the shooting, they spotted the suspect vehicle near Converse Avenue and Dell Range Boulevard.
When they attempted to pull it over, the driver tossed a bottle of vodka out the driver's side window, CPD said.
Officers conducted a high-risk traffic stop and took the driver into custody.
They identified him as Grayson and reported finding a loaded 9mm handgun inside the vehicle.
Police found bullets in the handgun that appeared to match the five empty shell casings recovered outside the bar, says the affidavit.
Court information identifies the charges as aggravated assault and battery and reckless endangering.
86'd
The shooting happened during the Peppermill's advertised Halloween weekend celebration, which included costume contests, cash giveaways and a tattoo-piercing raffle on Friday and Saturday nights.
Staff at the Peppermill Bar told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday morning that security handled the confrontation "perfectly" and Grayson has been "86'd."
Staff declined to answer further questions about the incident, including what happened before the confrontation or how security responded.
The Cheyenne Police Department credited people who called 911 and shared cellphone footage with helping officers quickly locate the suspect.
"The prompt reporting of suspicious activity and the timely descriptions provided by citizens played a critical role in the swift apprehension of a dangerous suspect," the department said in a statement.
If convicted on both charges, Grayson could face up to 11 years behind bars — 10 years for felony aggravated assault and battery and another year for reckless endangering — if the sentences are ordered to run consecutively.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
