A Maryland man angry with local officials for shutting off his water took his complaint down to city hall — then repeatedly rammed his pickup truck into the building, according to police and court documents.
The Aug. 30 incident left bystanders terrified in the tiny town of Taneytown, Md., and left the actual city hall building unsafe for use.
“He backed up and hit full throttle, in again and back out,” witness Marvin Flickinger told local station WBAL on Tuesday. “He must have done that … four more times.”
Photos from the scene show a dark blue pickup truck with its front end in the lobby of city hall. The vehicle’s wheels sit on top of debris from the building.
Rodney Davis, 55, has been charged with second-degree burglary, second-degree assault, malicious destruction of property over $1,000, malicious destruction scheme of $1,000 or more and reckless endangerment in connection with the incident.
Court documents allege that Davis was angry with the city for shutting off his water and that he threatened a council member by phone before the rampage.
Davis told the council member he had “had it and that he was going to f–king crash into the office and that he was going to go down to the police department and give them a surprise,” according to court documents obtained by the Baltimore Sun.
He then followed through on his threat and rammed into city hall with his pickup several times, according to the documents.
The structure was closed for business until Wednesday due to the damage.
“We’re a small community, and when something like this happens, it affects everybody here,” Mayor Bradley Wantz told local station WBAL on Tuesday. He added that city hall was largely vacant when the incident took place on Friday, shortly before 6 p.m.
“Potentially, if it had happened two hours earlier, there would’ve been people in that office that would’ve been harmed, if not worse,” he said.
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Wantz described the incident as a “terroristic attack” by a “disgruntled resident” in a statement on Saturday.
The one person inside city hall at the time was not injured.
None of the charges have been tested in court.
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