Reason To Not Exchange Obscene Gestures While Driving

[jlbenedict]

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/traffic/bal-fatal0411,0,6477616.story?track=rss


Ouch


"An exchange of obscene gestures led to fatal results this morning when a man and a woman in a convertible were cut off by the driver of a pickup truck on Interstate 270 south of Frederick, hit a guardrail and were ejected from their car.

According to the Maryland State Police, witnesses saw the driver and passenger of a Chrysler Sebring and the driver of a green pickup truck trading the gestures shortly after 8 a.m. about three miles south of Frederick on southbound I-270.

First Sgt. Russ Newell, a police spokesman, said that after the exchange, the driver of the pickup truck pulled into the lane in front of the Sebring and hit the brakes. Newell said the driver of the Sebring swerved, hit the guardrail and flipped over -- ejecting the two passengers through the open roof. They were pronounced dead at the scene.

Identifications of the victims were not available pending notification of relatives. However, Newell said the car they were driving had out-of-state tags. The victims were not wearing seatbelts, as required by state law, Newell said.

Newell said the pickup truck driver, who was described as a white male wearing a baseball cap, left the scene. The spokesman said police were asking anyone who might have witnessed the events surrounding the crash for further information about the truck and its driver."

 

[halik]

Inaccurate headline... more like reason why darwin likes people that drive convertibles without seatbelts.

 

[mugs]

That's unfortunate.

I'll continue to take my chances though. People must be told when they've done something wrong.

I wear my seatbelt though. I think they were taking a bigger risk by not wearing their seatbelts than by flipping someone off.

 

[Zysoclaplem]

Knowing that I caused the death of two people would eat at me until the day I died.

 

[Safeway]

Damn. That guy is a douche bag.

 

[Eli]

Brake check! It's been done to me, and I've done it to others.

It is unfortunate that people died. Tragic, even.

The guy shouldn't have brake checked them.

They shouldn't have swerved. And the guy in the pickup is a complete douche for leaving the scene.

 

[moshquerade]

seatbelts ftw

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: Eli
Brake check! It's been done to me, and I've done it to others.

It is unfortunate that people died. Tragic, even.

The guy shouldn't have brake checked them.

They shouldn't have swerved. And the guy in the pickup is a complete douche for leaving the scene.

Dumbasses on both sides. While I think the guy should be prosecuted for causing the accident intentionally, I don't see how he is responsible for their deaths.

 

[AbAbber2k]

At first I was going to simply condemn the truck driver... then I realized all parties involved were ****** morons and the best result would have been for all three of them to die in a huge ball of fire. Maybe twice over for the truck driver just because you have to be a supreme douchebag to willfully endanger someone's life. But seriously... How ****** hard is it to wear your seatbelt and not act like a ****** child on the road? :roll:

 

[shocksyde]

I've done a brake check before, but it seems the guy in the pick-up did a super brake check. Very unfortunate.

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Knowing that I caused the death of two people would eat at me until the day I died.

Some people, on the other hand, truly do not care. I'd place a good portion of blame here on the occupants of the convertible, who chose not to wear seatbelts.

 

[LS20]

ive been breakchecked before, buy someone driving 55 on the left lane (of 3 way highway)

never swerve again. you still risk collision.. potentially worse collision than if you were to break and potentially slam into that MFer anyway

 

[LS20]

^and by break i mean brake

 

[magnux]

I stopped issuing obscene gestures once I got my Road Rage Cards. Much more effective, I've found.

 

[jiggahertz]

Originally posted by: halik
Inaccurate headline... more like reason why darwin likes people that drive convertibles without seatbelts.

I agree that they should have been wearing their seatbelts, but it's doubtful that they would have survived a crash like that regardless.

 

[BlancoNino]

If somebody cuts you off, you should immediately hit the brakes and back way off until you are a reasonable distance....don't keep driving and honking and doing rude gestures. Cut off or not, the couple in the convertible were following too close and obviously did not give themselves enough stopping distance. The guy in the truck is douche, and what he did was totally uncalled for and more than likely illegal...although I would oppose charging him with homicide.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

The victims were not wearing seatbelts, as required by state law.

Looks like Darwin scored a Daily Double!

- M4H

 

[VTHodge]

Everybody loses in this. What kind of idiot doesn't wear a seatbelt on the friggin' interstate in a friggin' convertable. I've driven this road and it is always crowded. Lots of fender benders. Truck driver is an asshole but he didn't kill anybody. They killed themselves.

Originally posted by: LS20
^and by break i mean brake

If only there was some way to edit posts.

 

[uhohs]

moral of the story. seatbelts are for losers.

 

[RKS]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: Eli
Brake check! It's been done to me, and I've done it to others.

It is unfortunate that people died. Tragic, even.

The guy shouldn't have brake checked them.

They shouldn't have swerved. And the guy in the pickup is a complete douche for leaving the scene.

Dumbasses on both sides. While I think the guy should be prosecuted for causing the accident intentionally, I don't see how he is responsible for their deaths.

There was a similar incident in Ohio a few years ago. Two ladies 'dueled' each other until one did a brake-check causing the other to drive onto the shoulder and under a stopped semi killing her and her fetus. The other driver was charged with some degree of homocide (not sure if the charge was a double-homocide).

 

[MmmSkyscraper]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire

The victims were not wearing seatbelts, as required by state law.

Looks like Darwin scored a Daily Double!

- M4H

EXCELLENT /Q3

 

[Vic]

Let's hope they find the driver of the pickup and he gets a nice long ass-pounding stay in prison.

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: RKS

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: Eli
Brake check! It's been done to me, and I've done it to others.

It is unfortunate that people died. Tragic, even.

The guy shouldn't have brake checked them.

They shouldn't have swerved. And the guy in the pickup is a complete douche for leaving the scene.

Dumbasses on both sides. While I think the guy should be prosecuted for causing the accident intentionally, I don't see how he is responsible for their deaths.

There was a similar incident in Ohio a few years ago. Two ladies 'dueled' each other until one did a brake-check causing the other to drive onto the shoulder and under a stopped semi killing her and her fetus. The other driver was charged with some degree of homocide (not sure if the charge was a double-homocide).

It can't be homocide, as the woman was pregnant. Heterocide, maybe?

 

[buck]

Originally posted by: magnux
I stopped issuing obscene gestures once I got my Road Rage Cards. Much more effective, I've found.

Thanks for the laugh.

 

[magnux]

Originally posted by: RKS

There was a similar incident in Ohio a few years ago. Two ladies 'dueled' each other until one did a brake-check causing the other to drive onto the shoulder and under a stopped semi killing her and her fetus. The other driver was charged with some degree of homocide (not sure if the charge was a double-homocide).

I'd have to see that to believe it. There's no grounds for homicide. Reckless (Deliberate) indifference, sure. But homicide? Doubtful.

* Edit: The above comment is based on the assumption that this was simply a case of road rage gone awry. Should the offender have been intentionally trying to cause harm to the victim, the rules have changed.