A 52-year-old passenger who got onto a TriMet bus with an electric drill in downtown Portland this summer created quite a problem for the driver.

The passenger started running the drill, then ultimately started chasing the driver around and yelling out that he wanted to kill him.

Last week, Fred Maurice Knispel was sentenced to probation and orders to attend mental health court.

The frightening encounter began in the late morning of July 8, when Knispel sat toward the back of the bus, playing with his drill. Driver Dwight Gamler told him to knock it off, but Knispel refused.

When the bus arrived at the end of the line about noon at the Parkrose/Sumner Transit Center near Northeast 95th and Sandy Boulevard, Gamler told Knispel to get off.

That’s when Knispel cussed at the driver, then eventually stepped off and began chasing Gamler with the drill, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Gamler managed to escape harm, but Knispel smashed a windshield and dented the roof of a nearby TriMet van during the chase.

The moments leading up to the attack were caught on TriMet surveillance video.

Arrested July 8, 2018.

During a hearing last week in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Knispel pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a weapon. Knispel told jailers he’d been homeless for more than a year and that he has schizophrenia. He said he lived off his Social Security disability benefits, and smoked marijuana and drank alcohol daily.

He previously had been convicted of 35 misdemeanors and eight felonies for crimes ranging from home burglary to obstructing a police officer.

Sentencing guidelines would normally call for 2 ½ years in prison for Knispel’s latest crime. But the prosecution and defense agreed to three years of probation, plus requirements that Knispel take all of his prescribed medications and make weekly visits to mental health court. There, he will be required to check in with Multnomah County Circuit Judge Nan Waller, who will ensure that he continues to follow court orders, such as drug or alcohol treatment if deemed necessary.

If he doesn’t, Knispel could be sent to prison.

During Knispel’s sentencing, Waller noted that he seems to have made progress in the four months since he threatened the driver with the drill.

“You’ve had a chance to see the video?” Waller asked.

“Yes,” Knispel said.

“It was a frightening situation for the TriMet (driver),” Waller said. “That was a big drill, and it could have done considerable damage.”

She added: “Watching the video, it was hard to see yourself in that situation, based on where you are now.”

Fred Knispel, 52, pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a weapon in a hearing before Multnomah County Circuit Judge Nan Waller.

Waller said she was “impressed” with the goals and plan he’d written for himself once he was released from jail, which happened last Friday. Knispel was set to move into clean-and-sober housing in Old Town.

Knispel also said he got his food handler’s card earlier this month and plans to go to school after finding a job.

-- Aimee Green

agreen@oregonian.com

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