Road Rage Criminal Charges

Dallas Police Department reported over 800 incidents of road rage on North Texas roads in 2022. About 80% of drivers expressed extreme feelings of anger while driving. Add in that over 60% of households in Texas reporting owning at least one gun or firearm and you have a recipe for an increased number of shootings on Texas highways.

When road rage turns into a violent incident, the usual charge for the offense is Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. This offense carries a range of punishment from 5 years to life in prison and a possible up to $10,000 fine. The most critical factor here is the Deadly Weapon enhancement. When this is added to a charge, a Judge is prohibited from granting probation and half the time of the sentence must be served before parole eligible.

But these offenses are a unique situation for prosecutors and courts because they usually involve an aggressive victim as well as defendant. In road rage incidents, almost no “victim” is perfect. Most all road rage incidents take two to tango. This creates an advantage for defense attorneys in these cases.

The most important part of plea negotiations is making the State see that a jury trial is not in their best interest. It gives the defense a chance to negotiate something better than a prison sentence for something that on its face appears like a slam dunk for the state: the defendant fired a weapon at another person. But when that other person can be reasonably argued to be an aggressor, which in the case of road rage is not considered unlikely, it makes the process much more open to options such as removing the deadly weapon paragraph or even reducing the charges off the first degree felony.

If you have been charged with Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon due to a road rage incident, please call today for a free consultation. We have successfully reduced the charges on these cases and will fight for you and your freedom.