Staunton towing company owner skips out on Harrisonburg court hearing

The Staunton towing company owner facing a misdemeanor reckless driving charge at an April 5 political protest is facing more legal trouble after failing to appear in court on three firearm charges in Harrisonburg/Rockingham General District Court on Monday.

Jeffrey Wayne Armentrout was scheduled to appear on the three Class 1 misdemeanor charges, which stem from an incident reported on July 5.

The Virginia Online Case Information System reports that Armentrout was granted a continuance on the firearm charges to Sept. 4, listing as the reason for the continuance, “failure to appear.”

The failure to appear generated a fresh charge for failure to appear.

The Virginia Online Case Information System, under the “Defendant Status” line item on the failure to appear charge, reports Armentrout as a “fugitive.”

Armentrout is due to appear in Staunton General District Court on Aug. 13 on the reckless driving charge from the April 5 political protest.

From the Archives

• Staunton: Magistrate issues warrant in ‘rolling coal’ incident at April 5 protest
• Staunton: Towing company owner arrested on misdemeanor weapons charges
• Update: Judge issues continuance in Staunton protest reckless driving case
• Staunton PD officer warned Armentrout about ‘spinning tires’ before letting him walk