BY PEPPER FISHER
Port Angeles – A 71-year-old Port Angeles man is recovering at home after being attacked and severely beaten by his neighbor, allegedly for mowing the grass on the wrong side of the property line. Coming to the victim’s aid was another neighbor, State Senator Mike Chapman, who saw the incident from his home across the street.
It was around noon on Saturday in the 1300 block of S. Laurel Street when Chapman called 911 to report an assault in progress, telling the dispatcher that the attacker, 46-year-old John “Wes” Beeman, who stands 6’7” tall, was standing over the victim and kicking him repeatedly.
Chapman, who ran to the man’s aid, told KONP that Beeman is known to neighbors for his sometimes menacing behavior.
“Yeah, he’s a troubled individual. At least one neighbor that I know of, they have an anti-harassment order against him. He has assaulted verbally and, I believe a couple times, physically, people in the neighborhood. He has serious mental health issues. He’s been in and out of jail. So, it’s like a lot of folks in a lot of small neighborhoods, you know, we all look out for each other. I just hope this gets him the help that he needs, and clearly, he needs some professional help.”
Police arrived to find the victim, referred to as Bob in a police report, had blood coming from the side of head and from his ear. By that time, Beeman had retreated to his house and then began walking through the neighborhood. When police spotted him a couple of blocks away, they say he refused to comply with commands and resisted arrest until he was taken down by two officers.
Police Officer Mike Cameron’s probable cause statement describes the incident as an “unprovoked attack and the continuous assault of an elderly man that only stopped when another citizen intervened.”
Chapman says when he saw the attack he ran to the scene and covered Bob with his own body to protect him and stop the beating. We asked what he could tell us about why Beeman was so angry.
“You know, most of our properties in the neighborhood I live in don’t have fences. And so, there was a bush that straddles the property line, and my neighbor was mowing around the bush, like you do as a good neighbor. You don’t just mow your half of the bush, right? I mean the grass around the bush. When I got there, Wes, the suspect, was yelling, “Get off my lawn! Get off my lawn!” Now, if you want somebody off your lawn, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. Cold-cocking him from behind and kicking them while they’re on the ground is definitely not the right way to do it. So, it kind of took everything I could to shield my friend and keep Wes away.”
As of Tuesday, Beeman was still being held on a $15,000 bond, charged with assault in the 3rd degree, resisting arrest and obstructing a law enforcement officer.
“The police did a great job. The police were great. A thorough investigation, took all the statements. I thought that they were, went above and beyond. And I think our neighborhood feels very grateful to have the kind of police that we have here in Port Angeles that do such a great job.”
(Photo of the attack provided by Sen. Mike Chapman)