Baldwin Village Man Charged With Assaulting Man On 105 Freeway

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A 19-year-old man has been charged with assaulting an 83-year-old man during a road-rage incident that began on the 105 Freeway, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Gordon Cornelius Fritz of Baldwin Village is facing one felony count of elder or dependent adult abuse for the March 31 incident, according to Deputy District Attorney Philip Norris of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Fritz pleaded not guilty Thursday and is due back June 18.

Prosecutors say the incident began on the freeway after Fritz's vehicle nearly crashed into the victim's car.

After some yelling and honking, Fritz rammed the man's car, and when they pulled over to the side of the road, he began punching the victim in the face, prosecutors said.

Fritz is accused of then following the victim off the freeway and attacking him again near Arbor Vitae Street and Prairie Avenue in Inglewood, according to prosecutors.

His bail was set at $50,000. Fritz faces up to four years in state prison if convicted as charged.