LANE COUNTY, Ore. (Dec. 26, 2025) — A Junction City man was arrested following a reported hit-and-run and a series of disorderly actions late Monday night at a rural property east of Cheshire, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies were called around 11 p.m. Dec. 23 to a residence in the 27800 block of Highway 36 after reports that a rental box truck had rammed into victims as they were driving down a driveway. Investigators said the truck also smashed through a gate on the property.
While deputies were speaking with the victims nearby, another caller reported the suspect, later identified as Christopher Eugene Starnes, 46, of Junction City, was behaving disorderly, walking around the property naked while holding a large knife. Authorities said Starnes then left the area in the box truck.
Deputies later located the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop. Starnes was arrested without incident, and a large knife was found inside the truck, the sheriff’s office said.
Starnes was lodged at the Lane County Jail on three counts of attempted assault in the fourth degree, failure to perform the duties of a driver involving property damage, and two counts of criminal mischief in the second degree.
The Lane County Sheriff’s Office credited the Junction City Police Department for assisting with the response.
All suspects are believed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law
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