Charles Lafferty Pleads Guilty to 30 Counts of Felony Assault in Highway Projectile Incidents

SALINAS, California- Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni announced on Thursday, April 29 that 54-year-old Charles Kenneth Lafferty has pleaded guilty to 28 counts of assault with a deadly weapon and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer. These incidents involved Lafferty firing projectiles at numerous different vehicles driving on Monterey County highways between February 2019 and January 2020. Lafferty will receive a stipulated sentence of 15 years in state prison. Lafferty was arrested in Nipomo, California on January 22, 2020, following a comprehensive investigation by the California Highway Patrol into more than 70 incidents of vehicles being struck with unknown objects while driving. Lafferty became a suspect when his vehicle was identified at the scene of several reported projectile incidents. A detailed digital forensic analysis linked Lafferty to more than 50 of the incidents reported to CHP. Some incidents were reported days or weeks after the fact, and not all drivers were able to provide the exact date, time, and location where their vehicles were damaged. Six people in the affected vehicles suffered cuts and scrapes as a result of being hit with broken glass. A majority of the drivers and passengers were uninjured. No collisions were reported as a result of these incidents. The two counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer involved Lafferty shooting a marble at two CHP officers in a marked patrol vehicle who were responding to an earlier projectile incident. Neither officer suffered injuries. After Lafferty’s arrest, he admitted to repeatedly shooting marbles at traffic using a slingshot, but he never provided an exact number of times he did so. During his police interview, Lafferty did not disclose a motive for his actions. Police seized a slingshot, a slingshot replacement band, and 55 marbles from Lafferty’s vehicle the day he was arrested. The extensive investigation was conducted by the California Highway Patrol Coastal Investigative Services Unit and the CHP Monterey Area, with assistance from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. The Honorable Mark E. Hood will sentence Lafferty to 15 years in state prison on June 29, 2021.