South Austin road rage victim wants aggressive driver to face charges

[Jennibc]

Originally Posted by scm53

You were toying with this guy because he pissed you off by flicking his lights at you. I've taken defensive driving and I've never heard that "tapping your brakes" is part.

Yep. When I was reading the guy's essay all I could think was your ego can get you into a lot of trouble when you are behind the wheel. If someone is an ******* and starts tailgating me, I move over and thank god/fate/my circumstances that I am nothing like them. They are much more likely to get in accident than I am and incur the pain and cost associated with one. And why would the guy get out of the car?!?!?!? That's just crazy. If you see someone heading at you like that, you dial 911.

[BentBow]

Originally Posted by fotaug

Sorry for dredging this 9-month old thread out of the trenches, but I must found it via Google & in hopes of getting a legal eagle perspective on this.

Location: I-35 South near Onion Creek to Buda.
Conditions: Slick roads from rain about 4 hours prior.

I was driving in the right lane, and (truck) traffic ahead isn't quite keeping speed. I check & move over to the middle lane & accelerate to 70-72mph. Again, taking into account slick roads, I'm not trying to set any land speed records.

Some guy comes flying up behind me, gets so far up my ass that I can't see his headlights (driving a Honda Civic or Accord, I think). Then starts flicking his high beams at me. I tap the brakes (which where I come from is defensive driving) on two occasions and drop back to 65. This is my way of saying "I'm going the speed limit, in the middle lane no less, now get off my ass". Somewhere around the SR-45 interchange, he eventually goes around in the left lane, cutting me off by swinging back into the middle lane & standing on the brake. I went around him, he advanced ahead & tried the same nonsense.

At the point I wanted to exit the interstate (Main St. Buda), I had been forced over to the left lane b/c of these shenanigans. I missed my exit, so I opted to get off at the Niederwald exit, slowly easing over to the right lane, then over to the exit lane. At one point, this boob pulls up in the right lane next to me, window down, yelling something that I can't understand. He then speeds up, cuts over & gets off the exit in front of me at Niederwald, moving into the middle lane on the Frontage Road. I stayed behind him about 6-8 car lengths trying to get his plate numbers (with my high beams on) b/c at this point I'm tired of his **** & feel like reporting them.

We stop at the light for Cabela Drive & I-35 South Frontage, both in the middle lane. He gets out of his car & advances toward my vehicle on foot shouting a bunch of crap. About 2/3 of the way to my vehicle, after I saw that his hands were free & not holding a weapon, I got out of my car to defend myself. I felt he obviously had ill intent in advancing on me.He took the first shot & indeed hit me. I tried grappling at/with him to subdue, but when he kept swinging, I struck back --- at one point trying to knee him in the face. Both of our shirts were pulled over our heads at various points in this 2-minute exchange, and at one point his came off & I grabbed it off the ground (later given to the cops as evidence). Neither one was too badly injured so far as I could tell, but he walked back to his vehicle & sped off. I just pulled into Cabelas & called Hays County Dispatch. My personal feelings are if you're going to get out of the vehicle to assault someone, finish the damn job.

Buda cop tells me that we're both at fault for road rage, and HE could collar both of us for assault? And despite my belief that I was defending myself, the best "defense" I could have had was staying in my car, and, that by getting out of my vehicle I was instigating the situation, and my assailant more angered to commit the initial physical contact. He says he will get the other guy's story, and talk to TxDOT about pulling the traffic cam to see what footage may be available to investigate the matter further.

What if my assailant were to push through my window --- opened or closed??? What if he DID have a gun? I'm supposed to sit inside my vehicle trapped? I was stopped at a red light, and in the heat of the moment, I honestly do not know if I was boxed in by traffic in either lane aside of me.

What's the law here? Who is at fault, and can I legally be charged with anything? I don't feel that I was even guilty of aggressive driving, only doing what I had to keep an unsafe driver from injuring ME on the highway. I feel the altercation at the traffic light falls under self-defense, but the cop says otherwise, and that IF I opt to charge him with assault, that I too could be charged & both of us could be booked, having to fight it out in court.

Quite frankly, I only suffered a fat cheek from how many ever times he swung at my face. I'm more pissed that my 3-month old car has a few minute dents in it.

I love my exhaust brake on my Cummins, just for those guys!!!

No Brake lights to PO them..... But it will be just like I slammed on the brakes just letting off the throttle.

Their eyes get big, and they fly around me as I wave. Hurry on brother, hell is only half full.

[fotaug]

Originally Posted by ScoPro

This is the best advice fotaug is going to get in this forum. Lawyers have paralegals who surf these sites for discovery information.

In fact, fotaug should delete his posts.

I'd take that advice guy, but don't see an option to do so. Thanks anyway.