Driver Shot in Scuffle With Officer

A California Highway Patrolman shot and wounded a motorist who had attacked the officer with his own baton during a roadside scuffle Tuesday along the Santa Ana Freeway.

Henry Doeding, an 18-year CHP veteran, was reported in good condition at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange with head injuries, while Dennis Maughan, 35, of Whittier was in serious condition at UCI Medical Center, where he was operated on for a bullet wound to the stomach, according to CHP spokesman Paul Caldwell.

The shooting occurred about 4 p.m. after Doeding, 41, had pulled over a car that ran a red light onto the southbound Chapman Avenue on-ramp to the freeway in Orange, Caldwell said.

When Doeding was informed by a radio dispatcher that the car had been reported stolen last November in Huntington Beach, Caldwell said, he requested assistance.

Reportedly Went for the Gun

But before other officers could arrive, Caldwell said, the driver got out of the car and attacked Doeding, grabbing the officer’s baton and striking him in the head with it. The man then tried to grab Doeding’s gun while the two men wrestled at the side of the road, the CHP said.

Three passing motorists pulled over and were running to Doeding’s aid when a single shot was fired.

The motorists cared for the men until other officers and paramedics arrived.

Maughan will be charged with assault with a deadly weapon and possibly attempted murder, Caldwell said.

The shooting was being investigated by the Highway Patrol and Orange police.

Traffic, which had to be diverted away from the ramp to the Costa Mesa Freeway several miles away, was backed up for more than two hours, Caldwell said.