I think this is the most American headline of 2022.
Apparently a road rage incident escalated until one idiot 1 threw a water bottle at idiot 2, and who responded by firing a few rounds into idiot 1’ s car, hitting his 5 years old’s leg. Idiot 1 returned fire, as one does, and hit idiot 2’s 14-yr old, causing a collapsed lung.
They were stopped and arguing when police arrived while their children were bleeding [emphasis mine]. Both cars were full of kids, btw.
This is why I laugh at people who claim Aliens come here. Trust me, they take one look, hit the automatic door locks on their spacecraft, and give it full power in the opposite direction. They’re too smart to land.
As was commented in the dumb gun news thread, this was a situation where anyone could have turned into a parking lot, or fallen back, or sped off ( * ). But nooooo “I feel threatened and the solution to that is to use my gun”. And then of course you have to retaliate in kind.
(* Hell, almost all “road rage” would be gone if people were willing to be first to disengage)
Since according to article, they’re being charged with felony attempted murder, that result seems likely, but IANAL. At some level though, I also want them to lose loose their parental rights, because leaving a wounded, bleeding child in your car to continue your fight is… sorry, words fail me.
I have experienced road rage a couple of times. The worst was someone who intentionally tried to sideswipe me.* In each case, the aggressive nitwit sped off after their criminally reckless display, and I was all too happy they did so.
I can’t even imagine having the idea of chasing a person down.
* I was pulling onto the main road near my house. The coast was clear as far as I could see from the stop sign, but someone driving twice the speed limit came flying in from a distance as I was pulling out. They had to slam on the brakes, and I think in their mind I cut them off, so I needed to be taught a lesson.
That charge will inevitably be pled down because no prosecutor will want to take this to a jury trial in Nassau County (which went 72-26 for Trump over Biden). All it takes is one “stand your ground” absolutist to hang a jury.
Just to clarify… I have had experiences where another driver demonstrated road rage against me. I’ve never done so myself. I get impatient and sometimes pissed off behind the wheel, but to me if you use your vehicle in any way to express your rage, you are being suicidal/homicidal. (Not to mention a freaking gun.) There really has to be something wrong with you to do that.
I may have done that before. And that might have the risk of escalating matters, so I know it’s not wise. Just as a honked horn might. (Though honking your horn is important to let someone know you are actually there, especially when they are blindly changing lanes.)
There’s a difference between that and using your vehicle recklessly; speeding up to get in front of someone, cutting in front of them and braking (which is what the drivers in this story were doing), chasing a person down, playing “chicken” with someone. I see that kind of behavior on the road now and then and it’s terrifying. And as I said, I’ve had people do it to me before.
If someone is acting crazy on the road, all I want to do is get away from them. Pull off to another road, slow down and let them pass, whatever.
You are too optimistic. Whatever happens to their parental rights, I expect both to plead self-defense, and both to be acquitted as a result, in separate trials, so long as they can testify they weren’t aiming for the child, but rather for the “aggressor.” That’s what “stand your ground” laws do, IMHO. They make it easier for aggressors to escape accountability for confrontations they willingly initiated or escalated, where a more sensible self-defense doctrine would prioritize escape and de-escalation, with deadly force as an absolute last resort where circumstances make clear that there is no other option.
The Law was very firm, it
Took away my permit
The worst punishment I ever endured
It turned out there was a reason
Cows were out of season
And one of the hunters
Wasn’t insured.
Tom Lehrer, The Hunting Son. Yesterday’s insane parody today’s headlines.