LOS ANGELES (NewsNation Now) — California Highway Patrol and law enforcement agencies have been responding to more road rage incidents — with many cases ending tragically.
Over the weekend in southern California, road rage led to the death of 23-year-old Krista Nichols who was eight months pregnant with her second son.
They were passengers in a GMC pickup that was cut off by another vehicle in Long Beach.
Road rage between the two cars stretched on for blocks before reckless driving led to the deadly crash into a third vehicle.
A witness captured much of it on her cell phone.
“The way they were driving, I thought something’s going to happen. I just felt something was going to happen and it did,” witness Laura Montoya said.
NewsNation spoke with Nichols‘ father. See the full interview in the player below.
In another recent incident captured on dashcam near Seattle, a man hurled an ax at another driver who had exited to avoid confrontation. The road rage driver blocked the victim’s car on the road before the ax throw.
Surveillance video led to the man’s arrest three days later.
Just a few months ago, six-year-old Aiden Leos was killed in a road rage incident in Orange County, California.
His mother was cut off by another driver, she allegedly used a hand gesture and a man in the other vehicle opened fire.
Two people were arrested in that incident, including a 24-year-old man who faces a murder charge.
While there are no national statistics on road rage cases, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates incidents led to more than 500 deaths in 2019 alone.