North Carolina driver Kristen Leigh Phillips, 40, is facing misdemeanor charges after she was caught on videotape in a bizarre road road incident that left a small child screaming and a mother driver in shock. The video of the victim is below.
The incident began when Phillips allegedly passed another car on a two-lane road in a reckless fashion and the victim, Sherri Hastings, called 911 to report the incident. What followed is scary as Phillips made repeated abrupt stops and then got out and charged at the second car.
Phillips is shown reaching into the window and taking a swing at Hastings, who was trying to close her window as her young granddaughter was screaming in terror. Phillips then went back to her truck but turned and yelled “Fuck you” as she held up both of her middle fingers.
Phillips has been charged with assault and battery, communicating threats, and injury to personal property. There is really no defense that I can see with such a videotape and Phillips will presumably seek a plea agreement to drop the assault or threat charge, which is the most damaging for her record. Since they are all misdemeanors however a prosecutor may be reluctant to yield given the publicity and the strength of the evidence — as well as the presence of the child.
Unfortunate incident. Apparently the dike in the truck knew she had done something wrong and had I been behind her, as many times as she stopped in the middle of the road I would have called the cops and filmed her too. It is obvious the woman in the truck was trying to make the woman behind her rear end her. Kudos for the woman following she knew to stay far enough behind to keep from rear ending her on one of the idiots many stops. I have been in her shoes and it is frightening when someone does that to you. Especially in the country on a two lane road.
So? If you aren’t doing anything illegal or haven’t done something illegal, just ignore the person behind you.
You’re so even-tempered, it’s impressive.
Assuming if no one was behind her, I think it would have been funny when jerk lady came out and got close to the car if granny had backed up a little, let jerk lady get close again, back up some more and keep on doing that over and over.
Ouch! That has to hurt.
what provoked the unpleasant woman was that she could see granny recording her from behind.
So? If you aren’t doing anything illegal or haven’t done something illegal, just ignore the person behind you. Granny seemed to be keeping a reasonable distance and wasn’t tailgating. If you have done something illegal getting out and getting up and personal and in the camera’s face is a pretty stupid move.
In any case to stop your car and belligerently get out and physically assault the vehicle of the person behind you ….no matter how right you think you are……is just asking to get shot or “accidentally” get run over.
This woman looks like Ms. February in the “Women of the Flowers for Socrates Blog” 2015 calendar.
I too wondered what transpired prior to the videotaping. The swerving of the pickup truck, and the drivers actions tell me she may have been intoxicated. POSSIBLY, grandma was following, videotaping, and having the kid call 911 because she found this woman to be out of control intoxicated. I have followed a couple intoxicated drivers, calling 911, and getting “We’ll try and send someone” from the dispatcher. One of the cases was a guy going ~80mph on Interstate 90 in a 65mph zone, swerving, crossing lines, nearly sideswiping other vehicles. He was a clear and present danger. I called the dispatcher several times, giving the mile markers, description, plate#, actions, etc. After following the drunken cheesehead for ~30 miles[~25 minutes] and getting no response, I just took my exit and went on to my business.
It doesn’t seem to occur to people that what provoked the unpleasant woman was that she could see granny recording her from behind.
Note: Nowhere does this comment say that pounding on the window was defensible. OTOH, if we all call 911 every time somebody drives like a jerk then we’re gonna need a lot more cops.
how might have she been emboldened to follow and record that car for the next several minutes,
Following?
Um….maybe because she was driving down the same rural road as the woman in front of her and needed to stay on the road to get to her destination. In a rural situation, you don’t have a lot of choices on which road you can use to take to get to where you want to go. She likely wasn’t following on purpose….she had no choice….that’s where the road goes.
Would you want her to pull over to the side of the road, which I point out there is not much of a shoulder to that road. Sit in the rain until the person in front,……who kept stopping for no reason in the middle of the road…..had finally gone on her way. Halfway off the road on the shoulder, stopped, in the rain, she would have been in a more dangerous position.
I also note: from actually watching the video that each time the truck in front slowed down, for no reason, or stopped, instead of passing our grandmother driver also slowed down. This is a prudent thing to do, because if you tried to pass the road rage lady, she would probably then try to ram you off of the road.
As Paul said, we don’t know what happened before the recording started.
I wonder however, about the poor judgment the lady (following) showed. Given an easy-to-make 911 call, and an easy-to-make video of the transgressor (if not the transgression), how might have she been emboldened to follow and record that car for the next several minutes, even during the assault; instead of letting better sense take hold, given she had other options, and given she was carrying precious cargo? Do these appliances impart a feeling of immunity?
We will put someone in jail with a felony charge for 20 years for selling $80 worth of pot while at college (school zone). But only a misdemeanor for terrorizing someone on the road. An incident that could have easily led to a death. If the driver had shot this woman, I suspect it would be ruled a justifiable homicide.
The priorities of our country are so far out of kilter.
What we don’t have is what upset the woman. And living in Arizona, I have been behind enough Grannies to know they can bring on road rage.
What happened before granny hit “record”?
Even so. If Granny was being a d^ck before, the lady had now passed her and was in front. So ……continue on your way and ignore the Blue Hairs Driving In Your Lane.
Move on. You have a clear road ahead. Step on it.
A road rage stunt like that where I live would get you very dead. One does NOT stop in the middle of the road, then try assault of another driver here….a sheer act of idiocy if done here. As it should be. Try that crap on say Kercheval & Marlboro here, or Warren & 23rd Street …only if your insurance is paid up, and I don’t mean you health insurance.
What is it that these road ragers think? Bullet proof or what? Never mind if they tried it with a car full of 4 gorillas. I will never understand it.
Chip S., I wondered/thought the same thing.
Grandma: “Call 911!”
Granddaugher: “Why?”
Good question, kid.
People don’t usually drive like that for no reason. What happened before granny hit “record”?
I think it’s probably pretty tough being a bull dyke in North Carolina. That should be her defense.
Caught On Tape?? That’s really old!
I guess if it was me I’d have look for the first place with people and pulled in. I always figure these people are off balance and I don’t need to play their game.
That’s a woman?