Joined:
Jan 2024
Posts:
874
EE: 100% (94)
USA
Posted: 1/14/2026 2:55:37 PM EDT
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TL;DR: what can you legally do in an act of either self-defense or deterrence in response to a road rager who brandishes a firearm against you? Are you legally justified to brandish your own firearm in response? My personal anecdote: not too long ago, I had a slight incident of someone 'road raging' me when I merged onto a road from an inlet. Only vehicle (an old pickup) that was incoming felt pretty distant but suddenly accelerated when I finished merging and came up to my bumper, honked, then proceeded to change lines and cut me off in front, applying brake. We were approaching an intersection, so I changed lanes to the left only, leaving him in the lane immediately to my right. I looked over and up to his cabin where he was flipping me off and waving a handgun via his window. My light changed green to turn almost immediately after I returned my sights forward, end of story. Didn't have a dashcam for those curious... An older anecdote: was driving on a one-lane stretch of a US highway when a car proceeded to aggressively pass me in a no-passing zone, and decelerated/braked a little too much as they were completing the lane change because another of oncoming traffic; I laid down my horn, and that too was enough for the driver to apply full brake (causing me more or less to stop), changing about halfway between the lane and the tiny bit of 'shoulder' area to our right. In hindsight I should have just cut and passed by using the wrong-way lane but I didn't want to. Guy gets out and brandishes what looks to be a long-gun (probably a shotgun). I have my EDC pistol sitting in my cupholder but I'm a defuse-the-situation kinda guy, and decide to just wait out the guy putting his gun back, getting back inside, and taking off again. Had an old 720p dashcam at the time, didn't catch the guy's license plate though when I went to review the footage. Based off of both my firsthand accounts as well as far worse versions of this road rage that has even claimed the lives of people, what can you do when a drunkard or road rager takes their gun out, but doesn't start blasting? I'd think brandishing yourself in response would both escalate the situation, as well as be unlawful/legally unjustified from your end. |
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I'd say you handled it as best as it can be handled. Every deadly force road rage incident that I can recall involved a monkey posturing confrontation before anyone started shooting. They don't seem to just start blasting from inside their car or as soon as they step out. The best thing is to simply have your pistol(or roach spray, depending on the threat) in hand below their line of sight, do not verbally engage and unass the AO ASAP. If you have to shoot...you have to shoot. But it's the next to last choice of any reasonable adult. Being involved in any sort of UOF incident is simply setting fire to hundred dollar bills at best. It's steeply down Consequence Hill after that. |
| Happened here locally(not to me) in a construction zone on Hwy 54. Former Hwy Dept employee waved ahand gun at two out-of-towners.theycalled the po-po.after it was all said and done charges were reduced to misdomeaner....even tho said handgun was found in guys vehicle. |
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Posterity! You will never know, how much it cost the present Generation, to preserve your Freedom! I hope you will make a good Use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven, that I ever took half the Pains to preserve it.---John Adams
| Happened here locally(not to me) in a construction zone on Hwy 54. Former Hwy Dept employee waved ahand gun at two out-of-towners.theycalled the po-po.after it was all said and done charges were reduced to misdomeaner....even tho said handgun was found in guys vehicle. |
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Originally Posted By thorshammerblow: You could call the cops, give a license plate number, and a VERY accurate description of the gun. Like yes he brandished a black SIG 226 with an extended mag. That would lend a lot of weight to your complaint. 2. I've found that blowing my horn, except as a last resort to avoid a collision, just escalates things. Blowing it to express anger doesn't help - just get away from them if you can. If they follow you and continue harassing you, call 911. |
trobertson5-0 I wasn't put in jail for what I did. I was put in it for what I think. There were FBI agents posting in my threads. I've seen the discovery showing this.
LEFTISTS: ”Our violence is speech, your speech is violence!”
LEFTISTS: ”Our violence is speech, your speech is violence!”