Road Rage and Serious Accidents and Attacks
As if car accidents and daily dangers were not enough to keep us all on the edge of our seat, we now have this new wave of a very serious issue, often fatal and more prevalent than ever before – road rage. Road rage is defined as anger caused by the stress and frustration of driving in poor conditions. Unfortunately, that is a definition that needs a makeover! Road rage today is a violent, often unprovoked aggression in which verbal and physical threats and dangers are widespread.
Just this past weekend, I witnessed an incident that could have escalated quickly and been the next news headline. Fortunately that was not the case, but it was a sad fact that even those of us that feel someone else is being an aggressor, must be mindful that we do not know if that individual is willing to use his/her vehicle, or another weapon of deadly force – to turn an incident into a tragedy. In this particular situation, a truck pulling into a retail establishment was turning a bit slow for the liking of a small vehicle behind it. The small vehicle beeped excessively to express their frustration and the driver of the pick up reacted by hitting his brakes in the driveway he was entering – So as to express confusion, concern, and maybe even anger. The aggressors in the vehicle immediately stopped and started to provoke the other driver with a selective finger in the air and verbal taunts. This is just one example of many, that is now plaguing our cities and roadways.
Road Rage is Rampant
From the heartbreaking recent shooting in which a toddler was riding in a vehicle involved in a road rage case, to the Toledo man who was savagely beaten in front of his family – These news stories ripped from the headlines are anything but make believe.
The statistics are even scarier, with studies, research and reported incidents catching up with the times. As reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
- 66% of all traffic deaths are a result of aggressive driving
- 37% of road rage incidents have a firearm involved
- Male individuals under 19 are the most likely to have road rage
- 50% of drivers admit to retaliating with aggression when provoked
- Over a 7 year study, 218 murders and almost 13,000 injuries were reported
- 2% of drivers report trying to run an aggressive driver off the road
Road rage is a very dangerous scenario. The most common results in serious road rage incidents are grave danger;
- Accidents
- Intentional Harm (Firearm, etc)
- Injury as a Third Party
As with any evolving issue in our culture today, our laws and standards must evolve to keep up. Just as the definition of ‘Road Rage’ is dated and a far variance from the dangers we commonly see on the roads today, we must push our lawmakers, our insurance companies and our public servants to evolve and recognize the significance, the danger and the need for enforcement.
If you or someone you love was injured or killed in a road rage incident, you must contact my offices immediately.
I’ll be there for you, and I’ll Make Them Pay!®
Author: Tim Misny | For over four decades, personal injury lawyer Tim Misny has represented the injured victim in in birth injury, medical malpractice, and catastrophic injury/wrongful death cases, serving Cleveland, Akron/Canton, Columbus, Dayton and neighboring communities. You can reach Tim by email at misnylaw.com/ask-tim-a-question/ or call at 877.944.4373.
