Road Rage Escalates in Downtown Atlanta

Downtown Atlanta

Atlanta, Ga. - As an Atlanta DUI Lawyer, I typically cover news stories relating to traffic violations and cases involving DUI in Atlanta. However, today, a news story made headlines that involved what started as a traffic violation but resulted in serious felony violence.

According to reports out of Downtown Atlanta, three individuals were shot on Tuesday during a very severe road rage incident. Officers arrived to the scene off of Trinity Avenue to discover a pregnant woman and two men severely injured. All three people were shot multiple times. They were immediately rushed to a nearby hospital.

An investigation is underway, but for now, authorities believe that this incident was a road rage shooting.

In today's post, I will focus on the law behind what traffic violation led up to the ultimate crime of aggravated assault.

Aggressive Driving

O.C.G.A. §40-6-397 defines aggressive driving as:

A person commits the offense of aggressive driving when he or she operates any motor vehicle with the intent to annoy, harass, molest, intimidate, injure, or obstruct another person, including without limitation violating Code Section 40-6-42, 40-6-48, 40-6-49, 40-6-123, 40-6-184, 40-6-312, or 40-6-390 with such intent.

Aggressive driving refers to any sort of selfish, unsafe and risky driving behavior that shows disregard for the safety of other drivers.

If the facts above that have been reported are true, then this was probably the driver's driving behavior toward the other vehicles around him before he pulled the gun. 

Some common examples of aggressive driving behaviors include weaving in and out of traffic, changing lanes without signaling, passing in no-passing zones or emergency lanes, forceful merging, failing to yield, cutting off other drivers at close range, speeding, inappropriate gesturing and hand signals, inappropriate use of horns, flashing headlights, and tailgating.

Aggressive driving is a high and aggravated misdemeanor. This means that the offense falls into the middle ground between a misdemeanor and a felony. An aggressive driving conviction can result in up to 12 months of jail time as well as fines up to $5,000.

Practice Note

Aggressive driving is a serious offense but is typically seen hand in hand with DUI charges. Remember, most DUI cases start with traffic violations.

If you have been arrested, call our offices today. An Atlanta DUI Attorney can help you today.