Defendants Charged in Taped Road Rage Beating

Defendants were charged Monday with assault in the videotaped road rage incident that's gone viral, and which then led to the arrest of a suspect in a Belmont Shore hit and run May 25.

The best news from this oddball driving drama with a tangled story line was that a Belmont Shore Good Samaritan emerged.

As a result of Jim Poole of Belmont Shore watching the road rage video on TV news, he contacted media and police, and the alleged victim left unconscious along the Santa Ana (I-5) Freeway on the video soon became dually identified as a suspect in the Shore hit-and-run.

Charged today with assault with a deadly weapon - their feet - were David Mendez, 21, and Edras Ramirez, 27, both of Los Angeles. They were also charged with assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury. Both are scheduled to be arraigned July 13.

The men are accused of brawling with Jerry Patterson,s 49, while all of them were stopped on the I-5 freeway just north of Marietta Street on June 12. A cell phone video of the fight taken by another motorist - with Drake crooning "Take Care" through most of the footage - showed Patterson initially dukes up with one man, but he ends up with two combatants. Patterson was knocked to the ground, appearing to be unconscious, and his two assailants kicked him in the head before getting back into a black Volkswagon and leaving the scene. Patterson survived the brawl, and told ABC7 he was trying to drive away from the men, but they chased him down.

Patterson has not been charged in connection with the roadside fight. But Belmont Shore's Poole recognized him and identified him, and Patterson was arrested on a bench warrant for allegedly failing to appear in court in Long Beach earlier this year in connection with the Belmont Shore alleged DUI and hit-run and battery (of Poole). All three are misdemeanor charges, according to Long Beach Police Dept. spokeswoman Nancy Pratt.