Man sentenced in brandishing case

A man was sentenced Friday to 90 days for firing a weapon during a confrontation on his property with a group of dirt bikers last summer north of Washougal.

Superior Court Judge Gregory Gonzales ordered that Darrin K. Diegel can serve 60 days of his sentence through the Clark County Jail’s work-release program, if he qualifies, and the last 30 days on a work crew.

Diegel, 48, last month entered a Newton plea — acknowledging that a jury could find him guilty of a crime but not admitting to guilt — to the charges of unlawful display of a weapon and aiming or discharging a firearm. Both charges are gross misdemeanors. He initially faced a charge of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon, but that charge was dismissed as part of a plea deal.

Court records say that Jered Parker was riding his dirt bike with friends near Jones Creek on July 26 when Diegel confronted them about trespassing on his property. Parker said Diegel fired several shots at him, but he was not hit.

The confrontation was captured on video and posted to Facebook on July 27 by one of the bikers. The footage shows a man, later identified by police as Diegel, holding a pistol and using profane language, warning the riders to leave his property.

During sentencing, Diegel’s defense attorney, Jon McMullen, asked the judge to have mercy on his client. He argued that the dirt bikers knew they were trespassing, because several signs were posted and they had moved a barrier to get onto the property. He questioned why Parker wasn’t facing charges for trespassing.

McMullen said Diegel is a “pillar to this community” and is active in his church and local fire department.

“I defended my family against someone who proved he didn’t care about my rights and my family’s safety,” Diegel told Gonzales. He said he fired the weapon only as a warning.

Gonzales told Diegel that he should have called 911 instead.