Local man accused of shooting at occupied vehicle

SANDPOINT — A Bonner County man has been arrested for allegedly opening fire on an occupied vehicle on Colburn Culver Road last month.

Joshua Christopher Gervasi is charged with two counts of aggravated assault, three counts of discharging a firearm on an occupied vehicle and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Gervasi, 26, was arraigned via video feed between the Bonner County Courthouse and the jail on Thursday. Judge Tera Harden set his bail at $175,000 and entered an order forbidding him from contacting the alleged victims in the case, court records show.

The charges date back to a Sept. 27 noon-hour confrontation. One of the alleged victims, a 43-year-old Bonners Ferry woman, said she was taking a 37-year-old Rathdrum man to a residence on North Center Valley Road to clear up a misunderstanding, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Gervasi was alerted to the 37-year-old’s presence and the home and blocked the road with his truck when the 43-year-old tried to leave. Gervasi also allegedly lifted his shirt up to expose a semiautomatic pistol in his waistband, the affidavit said.

The woman returned to the home and attempted to leave again, this time with the 37-year-old in the passenger seat. Gervasi, court documents said, moved his truck to the side of the road, but used his body to block their patch and again brandished the pistol by lifting up his shirt. The 43-year-old tried to inch forward to persuade Gervasi to move, but he allegedly drew down on the vehicle and fired three shots into the Chrysler PT Cruiser’s front grille and radiator. They sped off and called 911 to report the incident and Gervasi broke off the pursuit.

When Gervasi arrested on the charges, he was found to be in unlawful possession of a firearm and drug paraphernalia.

A preliminary hearing on all of the charges is pending.

Aggravated assault is punishable by up to five year, while the weapon discharge offense is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, according to Idaho Code. The unlawful weapons possession can result in a five-year term upon conviction.

Gervasi is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a felony drug possession conviction.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.