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Two men injured in dispute over speeding on rural road By Mark Freeman WONDER � Angered that cars were speeding down his rural street in Wonder early Saturday morning, Jaxon Wood blocked Newt Gulch Road with his pickup truck. A car carrying John Michael Mathus, a 24-year-old Grants Pass man coming home from his wedding rehearsal, along with his bride-to-be and best man, came upon the pickup in front of Wood�s house and stopped. Police said an altercation quickly ensued, leaving Mathus stabbed in the abdomen and Roger Christopher Laing, Mathus� 28-year-old best man, shot and stabbed. Mathus and Laing were both recovering Monday from their injuries, and Wood was in jail facing felony assault charges. Oregon State Police Detective Ronda Osterberg said police do not believe Mathus and Laing were speeding in front of Wood�s home. Stephen Parker, 43, a boyhood friend of Wood who lives in a trailer on Wood�s property, said he did not witness the altercation, nor does he know exactly what triggered it. But Wood told Parker this was a case of self-defense, Parker said Monday. "They came after him," Parker said. "They were trying to do him bodily harm, and he was trying to defend himself. That�s his side of the story." But authorities said they believe otherwise and on Monday arraigned Wood on two counts of first-degree assault. Wood was returned to the Josephine County Jail, where he was being held Monday night on $250,000 bail. Mathus was listed in fair condition Monday at Three Rivers Hospital�s Dimmick Campus, where he underwent surgery after suffering a stab wound in his abdomen, a hospital supervisor Rod Scholl said. Scholl said doctors could not tell if he was stabbed more than once, Scholl said. Mathus was to have been married Saturday, Osterberg said. Laing was treated at the hospital�s Washington Campus and released Monday, a hospital spokeswoman said. Authorities declined to reveal where he was wounded. Parker said Wood had called police about the speeders Friday night, but that he was told there were no officers available. "They said, go handle it yourself the best way you can, " Parker said. "That�s when everything went screwy." Oregon State Police detectives arrested Wood without incident about 5 a.m. Saturday at his residence. Police declined to release further details, saying the case remains under investigation. Parker said his boyhood friend and current landlord is a naval veteran who is on disability. Court records also show that Wood has a criminal record with assault and burglary convictions. Authorities declined to say Monday what type of gun and knife were used in the incident. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA