PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A Portland man was charged with a hate crime after he yelled a racist slur and tried to hit a person with his SUV in a Gresham road rage incident earlier this week, according to court documents.
Trevor Hertz, 27, was charged with a bias crime, attempted assault, reckless driving and unlawful use of a weapon in the Monday night incident, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. Hertz’s arrest was first reported by the Portland Tribune.
The woman and man told investigators they were driving to their hotel in Gresham when Hertz began following them closely. They pulled over to let him pass, and Hertz allegedly yelled a racist slur.
Once they arrived at the hotel, Hertz drove at the man, who jumped into his vehicle to avoid being hit, they told investigators.
“You about to die tonight,” Hertz yelled, before trying repeatedly to hit the man, the couple told authorities, according to court documents.
At one point, the man threw a ladder from his vehicle into one of the windows of Hertz’s SUV. Investigators tracked the license plate to Hertz’s residence in Northeast Portland.
When officers asked Hertz if he had been driving in the area of the incident, he “shrugged his shoulders and said he was unsure,” according to court documents.
Hertz was released on bail and is scheduled to be arraigned in May. It wasn’t immediately known if he has a lawyer to comment on his case.
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