Background: The Bingham County Courthouse in Blackfoot, Idaho (Google Maps). Inset: Thomas Andrew Larsen (Bingham County Jail).
A teenager from Idaho finds himself out on bail after allegedly assaulting a man who pursued him following a near miss on the road. The incident has sparked legal proceedings and community interest.
Nineteen-year-old Thomas Andrew Larsen was released on a $10,000 bond on April 27, facing charges of aggravated battery. As reported by East Idaho News, court records reveal that Larsen, driving a maroon vehicle, came dangerously close to colliding with a woman’s car as she reversed out of a driveway in Blackfoot, Idaho, on April 25.
In response to the near collision, the woman’s father jumped into his truck and decided to follow Larsen to address the situation.
According to legal documents, a deputy from the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office was called to the unnamed man’s residence after reports emerged that he had been assaulted by two individuals, leaving him injured on the street. The authorities found him with a “severe nosebleed,” and blood staining his chest and knee. Additionally, he bore a “large scrape” on the back of his head and had briefly lost consciousness.
The man recounted to the police that after Larsen nearly hit his daughter’s car, he gave chase in his pickup truck. He claims Larsen responded by suddenly braking and making an offensive gesture.
When the maroon car came to a halt, the man reported to the police that two individuals emerged, leading to a verbal confrontation. He asserted he told Larsen and his companion, “You almost hit my daughter. Learn how to drive.” He noted that the next thing he remembered was regaining his senses on the ground.
Police spoke to Larsen and his passenger at the scene. Larsen allegedly told police that he stopped suddenly when he saw the car backing out of the driveway, then drove around it and went on his way. Larsen saw the man following him and admitted to brake-checking him.
When Larsen shared his account of the physical altercation that culminated in the man ending up on the ground, the younger man said the angry father hit him in the face first. Larsen told police he retaliated by hitting the man in the face twice, causing him to fall. While the man was on the ground, Larsen allegedly admitted to hitting the man “three more times in the face.” Larsen then said the man got up and drove away.
Police observed a large amount of blood on the pavement, and Larsen confirmed that it belonged to the alleged victim. Larsen told police he acted in self-defense, saying, “After he went down, I was kind of just scared cause I didn’t know. To be honest, I have never been in a fight. This is my first fight, and he’s a 55-year-old man, whose gut, I mean, he’s way bigger than me.”
According to court documents, police told Larsen that if he continued to beat the man once he was on the ground, his self-defense claim would not hold. Larsen was then arrested and booked into the Bingham County Jail.
Police visited the man and his wife at the hospital, where he was diagnosed with a broken nose and a 9 mm brain bleed. When asked about Larsen’s claim that the man hit him first, the man said he did not recall hitting him, but he remembered “flipping” off his cowboy hat. The deputy who wrote the report said the man was transferred to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center after the first hospital had “a hard time keeping him stable.” His current condition is unknown.
Larsen was released from jail after posting bond. His next court date is scheduled for May 21.
