Free Republic

VISTA ---- A Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday that San Diego police Officer Frank White should stand trial for shooting an Oceanside mother and her 8-year-old son during an alleged case of road rage in March. "I think we expect more from our officers than the conduct that was displayed here," Judge Joel Pressman said at the end of White's preliminary hearing. White is charged with one felony count of negligent discharge of a firearm and a misdemeanor charge that he brandished his gun during a traffic confrontation with Rachel Leann Silva, 28, and her son, Johnny. White is the...

SAN DIEGO -- Charges were filed Tuesday against an off-duty San Diego police officer who shot an 8-year-old boy and his mother during a traffic dispute. District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis made the announcement Tuesday in connection with the March 15 shooting involving Officer Frank White, 28. He was charged with one felony count of gross negligent discharge of a firearm with two enhancements for great bodily injury and one misdemeanor count of exhibiting a firearm. The charges carry a maximum sentence of nine years in prison. White surrendered to authorities in Vista and pleaded not guilty to the charges. He...

When gas prices surged above $4 per gallon earlier this year, it didn't take Nostradamus to predict that there would be a resultant rush to carbon-free commuting options—especially in a place like Portland, which is known for its ample network of bike lanes. Cyclists in "Stumptown" are spinning their spokes here in unprecedented numbers, trading in their fuel-guzzling SUVs for stylish 27-speeds. But the cycling surge has created conflict, as the new breed of commuters bumps up against the old, oil-powered kind. First came a drunk cyclist repeatedly smacking the driver of a car with his bike July 6, before...

ROANOKE — Call it two-wheel road rage. A Keller bicyclist was cited for simple assault Saturday after he threw a water bottle at a motorist who he believed had cut him off. Several cyclists were riding about 9:30 a.m. in the 400 block of Ashley Lane when a Toyota driven by a 43-year-old Trophy Club woman veered in front of them, according to a police report.One bicyclist pursued the motorist and got her to stop a few blocks away, the report states.The bicyclist threw the bottle, which went through a window and struck the woman.

Drivers who sport bumper and window stickers on their vehicles are more prone to road rage, say researchers at Colorado University. The researchers have released a new study which discovered that motorists with personalized items on a vehicle are more likely to be aggressive drivers. Assessing the behavior of 500 drivers, they found that in the face of provocations such as being stuck in traffic, owners of cars covered with stickers and trinkets -- known as territory markers -- were more likely to act on their anger by flashing lights, tailgating and blocking other drivers. Other major findings: Drivers with...

The Journal of Applied Social Psychology provided a little illumination lately to understanding road rage. In a study by Drs. Szlemko, Benfield, Bell, Deffenbacker, & Troup (which sounds more like a remarkably diverse law firm than a medical study team), researchers found that the more bumper stickers on a car, the more likely the driver is to behave dangerously on the road. Sort of puts that obnoxious “COEXIST” sticker in a whole new context, doesn’t it? The doctors found that things like fuzzy dice, stuffed toys, seat covers, and bumper stickers were all ways that drivers personalize their cars –...

Three horrors await Americans who get behind the wheel of a car for a family road trip this summer: the spiraling price of gas, choruses of "Are we there yet?"—and the road rage of fellow drivers. Divine intervention might be needed for the first two problems, but science has discovered a solution for the third: Watch out for cars with bumper stickers. That's the surprising conclusion of a recent study by Colorado State University social psychologist William Szlemko.

A Georgia man was arrested for murder after he allegedly shot and killed a motorcyclist who he said was following his teenage daughters home from a Target store, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Richard Harold Gear's two daughters, ages 17 and 19, called their 45-year-old father from their cell phones to tell him they were being followed, the paper reported. When they got home their father was at the end of their driveway with a pistol, police told the newspaper.

A second 18-year-old has been charged with murder in the September fatal shooting of Lon Dell Wilson on Highway 101 near Burlingame. Prosecutors allege "Mohammad" Rabah of Hayward supplied the handgun that Doyal "Ali" Webber used to shoot the 25-year-old Wilson in an apparent road rage incident. Rabah was arraigned Friday in San Mateo County Superior Court after being arrested Thursday morning. He did not enter a plea and will be held without bail pending a Feb. 8 hearing for identification of counsel. The two murder suspects were part of a caravan of three cars driving up Highway 101 toward...

Coon Rapids man charged with shooting officer in road rage The Anoka County courthouse revealed documents Wednesday that charge 35-year-old Martin Scott Treptow with the shooting of a Robbinsdale Police officer. Treptow, of Coon Rapids, claims Officer Landen Beard was not wearing a uniform at the time he forced Treptow off of the road on June 7. Beard supposedly was driving an unmarked car. When the two men confronted each other, Treptow claimed Beard pointed a gun at his wife. "We were about three feet away from each other and he pointed the gun at my wife. It was a...

A U.S. Navy veteran with a clean driving record who faces a $1,050 civil remedial fee after he was cited for driving 20 mph over the speed limit in Arlington sued the state of Virginia yesterday over its "abuser fee" program. Kyle M. Courtnall, a lawyer representing Charles "Chaz" Mason, filed a motion in Arlington General District Court to declare the civil remedial fees, which range from $750 to $3,000, unconstitutional because they don't apply to out-of-state drivers. The fees went into effect July 1. Mr. Mason's motion mirrors successful challenges heard last week in courts in Henrico County and...

A CLAIM by the girlfriend of a man accused of a brutal road rage attack on an 87-year-old that "half the Australian men would have done the same thing" has been resoundingly rejected in a Daily Telegraph online poll. Martin Bruce Gamman, 33, was hiding in his southwestern Sydney home yesterday, six days after allegedly punching war veteran Tom Golden several times in the face during a traffic incident. Showing little of the bravado he is accused of displaying last week, he refused to reveal himself when confronted by The Daily Telegraph.It was up to his partner - the mother...

Victim tackles shooting suspect Chatsworth man dodges bullets in chase BY RICK COCA, Staff Writer Article Last Updated: 07/11/2007 10:08:27 PM PD TARZANA - A Chatsworth man turned the tables on a gunman who fired at him outside a Ventura Boulevard cafe last month, dodging bullets as he chased down and tackled the startled shooter, authorities said. The 25-year-old Chatsworth man chased down Robert Hudson, 20, of Porter Ranch, accused of turning violent after a road-rage incident June 1. Hudson faces multiple felony counts and is expected to enter a plea in a July 20 arraignment hearing at the Van...

CAMAS, Wash. – Among the things you can't avoid in life – death, taxes and the slow driver in the fast lane. Oh, you can try passing them in the HOV lane, but if you’re driving solo, the State Patrol will likely make you pay for it. You can tailgate, but risk getting into a wreck. You can honk or give the one finger salute, but then you're dealing with potential road rage. Now a Camas man has come up with a passive-aggressive way to make those slow drivers in the passing lane move over, and it's apparently working. J.A....

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Thou shall not drive under the influence of alcohol. Thou shall respect speed limits. Thou shall not consider a car an object of personal glorification or use it as a place of sin. The Vatican took a break from strictly theological matters on Tuesday to issue its own rules of the road, a compendium of do's and don'ts on the moral aspects of driving and motoring. A 36-page document called "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road" contains 10 Commandments covering everything from road rage, respecting pedestrians, keeping a car in good shape and avoiding...

FReep this Poll! "When driving on the freeway, do you most often move over to the right lane to allow faster drivers to pass or do you maintain your speed and lane?" Move over Maintain

Lefties launch 'Move over' campaign By: Dave Downey - Commentary Sunday, June 17, 2007 Look out, all you left-lane campers. Soon, you could be approached from behind by an impatient commuter with the words "move over" and a giant arrow pointed in the direction of the No. 2 lane pasted across his or her windshield. Those drivers who routinely get irritated when you create those mile-long backups now have a polite way of communicating with you. For $29, they can buy their very own "move over" windshield decals through the Web site leftlanedrivers.org. The site was set up earlier this...

A variety of driving restrictions were advanced Thursday by lawmakers in three separate committees aimed at improving road safety in New Jersey and increasing driver accountability.  A proposed ban on text messaging while driving was expanded to include language upgrading the existing ban on talking on a hand-held cell phone while driving to a primary offense. That would give police the authority, for the first time, to pull drivers over even if they're not seen committing any other offense.  "This is a phenomenon that is exploding," said Assemblyman Paul Moriarty, D-Gloucester, sponsor of the texting-ban proposal. "It is highly dangerous,...

(AP) Anoka, Minn. Anoka County authorities have released without charges a man suspected of shooting and wounding an undercover Robbinsdale police officer. Martin Treptow,35, says he fired to protect his wife and two toddlers inside the family SUV. The Anoka County attorney's office says Treptow was released after Thursday's incident in Coon Rapids, but the investigation was ongoing. Coon Rapids police say Treptow and a 27-year old officer in an unmarked car got into a dispute on the road. After angry words and gestures, Treptow pulled his SUV up to the driver side of the other car, stopped at a...

Driver Arrested In Minivan Dragging Death Police Believe Man Attempted To Flee Country NEW YORK -- A Coral Springs man is being detained in New York in the death of a woman who was dragged for several miles under a minivan after trying to stop the driver from fleeing a collision. Abdelaziz Hamze, 24, was discovered aboard an Athens-bound flight at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport around 4:20 p.m. Monday, according to Broward Sheriff's Office. It is believed Hamze, a U.S. citizen who was born in Lebanon, purchased his ticket to Greece following the murder, police said. Athens is...