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Updated May 7, 2026: Marion County deputies arrested a 22-year-old passenger after gunfire erupted during an apparent road-rage encounter in Ocklawaha. Jaxon Myler Prater was booked on felony charges after allegedly using a green-laser sight and firing a handgun into a victim's vehicle near E Highway 40, the sheriff's office said.
The confrontation unfolded on a Friday night, Sept. 18, according to the arrest report. Deputies working at the Forest District Office in Silver Springs said they heard roughly 10 shots in the immediate area. Minutes later, two people contacted dispatchers to report that a red truck had fired into their rear windshield near the 1990 block of SE 183rd Avenue Road.
The victims told investigators they were heading eastbound on E Highway 40, in the vicinity of a Winn-Dixie, when they saw muzzle flashes from the passenger side of a red Ford F-150. They continued east and then turned onto SE 183rd Avenue Road, but the pickup followed.
According to the arrest report, the F-150's driver turned on an aftermarket light bar, pulled close behind their vehicle and began tailgating. A green laser then appeared in the passenger-side window of the truck and was pointed at the victims. Fearing for their lives, one of the victims fired two rounds in self-defense; both shots missed the truck.
The passenger, later identified as Prater, allegedly replied with several rounds of his own. Those rounds shattered the victims' rear windshield and hit the passenger-side area of the trunk, according to the report.
An MCSO deputy spotted the Ford F-150 when it turned back onto E Highway 40 and initiated a stop. Prater and the driver were taken into custody, with deputies later deciding to charge Prater and hold him in Marion County Jail.
The driver of the pickup provided a statement that tied the gunfire to the earlier traffic clash. He admitted that he was angry over the victims' driving and had tailgated them. He also said Prater had been drinking before the encounter and that he watched Prater point the laser and fire into the victims' vehicle.
The driver's statement included another detail that may matter to a jury: Prater allegedly talked about tossing the firearm out the window as law enforcement closed in. Prater reportedly agreed with the driver's description of events, but he did not offer further explanation, the report says.
The court likely received a significant piece of evidence too. Deputies said the victims' dashcam recorded the green laser and the sound of gunshots, which could corroborate the timeline of who fired when.
A search of the truck produced a black 9mm Taurus semiautomatic handgun fitted with a green laser underneath the passenger seat. Deputies also said they found spent shell casings on the passenger floorboard, an empty magazine on the seat and a loaded magazine under the center console.
Marion County jail records show Prater was arrested and held on a $150,000 bond. The charges include two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, discharging a firearm from a vehicle, firing a missile into a vehicle and using or displaying a firearm during a felony.
Jail records from the time of the arrest listed his first appearance for 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 20. It is not clear from the report whether the pickup's driver was facing any related charge.
Two elements make the case more than the typical road-rage report: the use of a laser sight and the availability of video. Law-enforcement reports often describe road-rage cases that come down to conflicting accounts, but a camera can help establish the order of the shots and the position of the vehicles.
The laser adds another layer. A green laser can be disorienting and is often used on guns, and seeing it aimed at a vehicle can reasonably make a driver fear an immediate threat. That may be central to the self-defense argument raised by the victims.
Florida law also imposes harsh consequences for gunfire from a vehicle. If Prater is convicted of an eligible felony and the firearm was fired, the state's "10-20-Life" statute could require a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison for the discharged weapon. That could significantly increase the stakes beyond the individual counts.
The incident also highlights a broader safety issue. Law-enforcement agencies and safety researchers have repeatedly warned that minor traffic disagreements can become violent in seconds. In this case, deputies were close enough to hear the shots, enabling a rapid stop, but the sequence of events shows how quickly a tailgating dispute escalated to an exchange of fire.
As of this rewrite, no additional public statement from the Marion County Sheriff's Office or the State Attorney's Office had been included in the original report. The case will likely turn on witness statements, the driver's admissions and the dashcam recording, with the court determining whether Prater's actions amounted to aggravated assault or a hasty response in an already dangerous situation.
