Wasilla man pulls gun on trooper

A Wasilla man is facing a host of charges after a Saturday night incident in which he pulled a gun on a trooper and resisted arrest after a traffic stop on a vehicle in which he was a passenger.

Troopers arrested Jerome W. Orton, 31, on charges of third-degree assault on a peace officer, two counts of fourth-degree assault on a peace officer, misconduct involving weapons in the fourth and fifth degrees, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

According to reports, Orton was a passenger in a 2000 Dodge Neon driven by 36-year-old Palmer resident Jessie B. Klingenberg. Troopers pulled over Klingenberg on Knik-Goose Bay Road near Clapp Street around 10:48 p.m. for a moving violation and discovered he had an outstanding warrant for a parole violation. Klingenberg was arrested without incident, but troopers said Orton got out of the vehicle and “drew a concealed firearm which he pointed in the direction of a State Trooper,” according to the dispatch. “A State Trooper in close proximity to Orton subsequently disarmed him. Orton then resisted arrest resulting in minor injuries to two State Troopers.” Orton was taken to Mat-Su Pretrial with bail set at $25,000 plus a court-appointed third party custodian. Klingenberg was held without bail.