Story Published: May 28, 2009 at 9:23 AM PDT
Bix Brian Barker
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — A man shot three times by a sheriff's deputy has been sentenced to 13 months in prison.
Bix Barker, 57, could get another three years if he violates probation, which requires him to avoid alcohol and not even visit a bar or a liquor store. "You need to keep that in mind," Lane County Judge Jack Billings said Wednesday. "A Budweiser is going to cost you three years of your life."
Barker almost lost his life after a bizarre stretch in December that his attorney, Herbert Evans, blamed on alcohol.
On Dec. 5, Barker allegedly threatened three women with a rifle in downtown Springfield. One woman called 9-1-1 to report that Barker might have dead woman in the passenger seat of his pickup.
"It turns out it wasn't a dead woman, but a mannequin that Mr. Barker carries with him in the passenger seat," prosecutor Erik Hasselman said.
Two days later, police were called to a dispute between Barker and his elderly mother and stepfather. Soon, 9-1-1 callers reported hearing a loud explosion. Witnesses said Barker had set his pickup on fire.
Deputies arrived to find Barker sitting in a lawn chair, the pickup ablaze. He had salvaged the head of the mannequin, Hasselman said.
When deputies approached, Barker began waving a lighter near a propane tank and encouraging the deputies to come closer. "His actions appear to be what is known as suicide by cop," Hasselman said.
Deputies said Barker disregarded orders to show his right hand, and began to approach. A deputy tried to stop Barker by firing beanbag rounds at him.
Prosecutors said Barker then raised a rifle toward a deputy, who replied with five .45-caliber rounds.
Two rounds hit Barker near his shoulders, and a third struck him in the leg, officials said.
Barker, who pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a weapon and menacing, was initially hospitalized in critical condition. He used a wheelchair at a February court appearance, but could walk Wednesday.
(Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.)
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