Driver angry at Calaveras Frog Jump traffic hit people with bear spray, deputies say

A man used bear spray on seven people out of anger at heavy traffic into the Calaveras County Fair & Jumping Frog Jubilee, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Four adults and three children suffered undisclosed injuries in the Sunday morning attack in Angels Camp, a news release said.

Bryan Keith Cognetti, 48, of Sonora was booked on assault and other charges after his arrest at the fairgrounds. He remained in the county jail as of Monday afternoon on $1.38 million bail.

“Bear spray is not for use on humans,” the release said. “Per EPA, it is considered a pesticide.”

The event, better known as the Frog Jump, was inspired by an 1865 story by Mark Twain and is among the county’s largest annual gatherings.

The release provided these details:

Deputies working the fair were informed at about 11:45 a.m. about a fight and vehicle accident at the south entrance to the fairgrounds. Witnesses said Cognetti was yelling at a driver who passed in the lane next to him when his vehicle collided with another in front of him.

Cognetti punched the vehicle that had passed him and then started arguing with the driver involved in the collision. The suspect then retrieved a canister of bear spray and a knife and sprayed a group of people nearby.

The victims went by ambulance for treatment at an emergency room. Their names and the nature of the injuries were not disclosed.

The spray can be legally used against threatening bears and has about six times the range as the pepper spray designed for humans.

Cognetti faces four counts of assault with a deadly weapon, three counts of child abuse with significant injury, one count of assault using bear spray, seven counts of exhibiting a deadly weapon in a threatening manner, and one count of vandalism.