Man set off by another driver’s ‘hand gesture’ opens fire in road rage, NC police say
When the driver of a Ford pickup truck laid on his horn at a stoplight, the motorist in front of him “made a hand gesture,” police say. Minutes later, the man in the truck pulled a gun.
Sheriff’s detectives in Union County, North Carolina, arrested 22-year-old Chandler Marsh Williams on Tuesday. He’s been charged with assault by pointing a gun during the road rage incident that occurred on the evening of July 25.
Williams, who was driving a black Ford F350 pickup truck, allegedly blew his horn at a fellow driver while they were stopped at a traffic light on Wesley Chapel Road and Old Charlotte Highway, police said in a statement.
Following the reported hand gesture, police said the pair followed each other “at varying speeds” until Williams passed the other car at a roundabout and allegedly stopped in the road.
“The Ford driver exited the truck and pointed a handgun toward the victim,” police said in the statement. “After verbally threatening to kill the victim, the suspect pointed the firearm to the right of the victim’s car and fired one round before driving away.”
The victim, who called 911, said he followed the truck some distance before he lost Williams, according to police.
No one was injured, but police said a “spent shell casing” was recovered at the scene.
“People get upset at other drivers over things they often have no control over,” Sheriff Eddie Cathey said in a statement. “Too many times, drivers are in a hurry and allow their emotions to get the best of them. Getting out of a vehicle to confront someone with a gun is never a good idea. Thankfully no one was hurt in this matter but it could have turned out a lot worse.”
This story was originally published August 6, 2019 at 6:11 PM with the headline "Man set off by another driver’s ‘hand gesture’ opens fire in road rage, NC police say."
