Lafayette Motorist Hurls Open Coke Can, Homophobic Slurs In Apparent Road Rage Incident [VIDEO]
I've experienced frustration in Lafayette traffic, but this is on another level.
Facebook user Caliese Humble uploaded a video to her Facebook page showing a traffic incident that allegedly occurred earlier today in Lafayette. According to her caption, what we see when the video begins is a clear case of road rage.
so I was going too slow for someone on the road today so she threatens me and throws a open soda into my car and presumes to call me a dyke.
The women go back and forth with words, but the part of the video that shocked me was when the driver in the white car throws an open can of Coca-Cola into Humbles car window. This visual we see here is definitely alarming, but it can also be defined as something else: Assault.
The law defines assault and battery as an unwanted touching that is done in a rude or angry manner. It can be as simple as shoving someone, blocking their way, spitting on them, grabbing someone's arm, throwing something (liquid or otherwise) at them, or even grabbing something out of their hand.
Many of Humble's friends have come to her defense on social media demanding justice, and she has notified police of the incident that reportedly took place at the corner of Johnston and Camelia.
I spoke with her about the incident, and she revealed that the incident started while they were driving on Camelia in the River Ranch area. The speed limit down the majority of that stretch of Camelia is 35 mph. Humble told me the woman was driving about 10 mph slower than the posted speed limit so she went around the vehicle.
she took it as me cutting her off at riding her a**
Caliese Humble said that she took her phone out and began to record as soon as the girl began insulting her. She also noted that the girl allegedly followed her down Congress for the next 10 minutes.
Humble also noted that there was a law enforcement officer in the general area during the entire alleged incident; which is part of the reason why she is refusing to press charges. She believes there could be a lesson in all of this for the woman who threw the Coke at her.
We received the following statement from Caliese in response to the alleged incident:
today was a day just like any other day
yeah someone threw a coke can into my car, but that ended being less stressful than some of the sexual harassment I’m used to experiencing on a daily basis.what I want people to take from this is not only the fact that there are always angry people in the world, but I want people to understand that anger doesn’t come out of anywhere.
anger is something deeply rooted. it comes from inherited actions and reactions learned with or without choice. and the root of these actions and the anger that comes from them is almost always fear, and a power struggle
her anger and her specific use of particular slurs were merely a projection of her own fears and misunderstandings of herself. and that’s not something to be angry at, that’s something you forgive.
this is the reason I’m not going to press charges. I believe that punishment doesn’t teach, it only fuels more anger. I’m also not going to put the child of a mother in a potentially damaging financial situation for something that’s nothing more than a simple misunderstanding on a bad day.
I’m not justifying her actions. I just simply believe that the only way to help people is through kindness and education. I’d rather know that she learned from this so she can be a better example for her child than try to get a bunch of money from her.
I have bad days too. I say things I regret in the heat of the moment. But what causes people to act out in anger is nothing more than an internal power struggle. people like that let their pride get in the way of empathy. And the only proper response to pride is patience.
I don’t claim to be all wise and I’m not a psychology major. but these are all basic human feelings and functions that everyone needs to understand, not only for the good of themselves but the people around them. it’s part of being a normal, functioning citizen of society. Through understanding this we can better act and react in all types of situations in life, whether on the road or not.
but to the people out there that are angry, I want to make sure they understand this the most. I’m not condemning anger but asking for a broader and more patient understanding of it. because when you choose to let your pride win, and erupt and say mean and hurtful things...you’ll regret it when it’s over. because you inflict harm on the people that end up having the potential to care about you the most and learn nothing.
How would you have handled this situation? Do you think you could be as patient in your reaction? Would you press charges?
Humble has decided to take the attention she has garnered as a result of the alleged road rage incident she was involved in and use it to create some sort of positive outcome instead.