Road rage costs ex-lobbyist his gun
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
By Chris Fitzsimon
Don Beason and a motorist give conflicting accounts of the incident at Cameron Village
Ryan Teague Beckwith, Staff Writer A former top lobbyist was sentenced Tuesday to 100 hours of community service and ordered to relinquish his gun for a road rage incident at Cameron Village this summer.
Don Beason, once a contract lobbyist for companies such as BB&T, Wachovia Bank and Progress Energy, was found guilty in Wake County District Court of simple assault, a misdemeanor.
But Judge Joy Hamilton found him not guilty of assault by pointing a gun, a separate misdemeanor charge.
The incident happened just three days before federal prosecutors filed paperwork that unraveled Beason’s lucrative lobbying career, which generated an annual income in the six figures.
On July 6, a Raleigh man pulled into a gas station, crossing a lane of traffic in front of Beason’s Toyota pickup truck.
Jason Batten testified that Beason began honking repeatedly. Batten told the court that he walked up to the truck and saw Beason pull a Taurus .357 revolver from the floor and set it on the passenger seat.
The gun had five bullets in its six chambers, and it was still in its brown leather holster.
Beason said he honked briefly. He said Batten approached his truck, cursing angrily, and tried to open his passenger side door. He said Batten asked him to step outside to "teach you a lesson."
"With the man’s demeanor, the look on his face and pulling on the door handle, I was concerned for my safety," he told the court.
Batten said he did not threaten Beason or try to open the door. (more…)
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