Phoenix Road Rage Lawyer
Phoenix Road Rage Attorney
Road rage itself is not inherently illegal in Arizona, so many drivers are surprised when they are arrested for the actions they took while being angry. Driving can be stressful and frustrating, but it is important to keep a check on your emotions and avoid reacting angrily when other drivers behave dangerously on the road. If you are charged with reckless or aggressive driving or another criminal offense due to road rage, you need a Phoenix road rage lawyer.
The penalties for criminal offenses due to road rage can be severe, and they can be worsened if someone is injured or a deadly weapon is present. You could be facing imprisonment, fines, and a criminal record if convicted. You may also see penalties such as license suspension and increased insurance premiums. No one should underestimate the consequences of criminal offenses, and anyone who is facing such allegations should always find a skilled and dedicated attorney to protect their interests and rights.
Dworman Law: A Criminal Defense Team for Road Rage Offenses
The team at Dworman Law has significant experience helping drivers navigate criminal cases, and we understand how stressful these situations are. A mistake in the heat of the moment should not affect the rest of your life. Our firm can work to limit the effect that a conviction has on your life by minimizing the penalties or working on a defense that gets the charges against you dropped. Our goal is to look at every option to find the most favorable outcome.
You may be facing a charge for reckless driving, aggressive driving, endangerment, or even assault. Howard Dworman can fight for your interests and provide diligent legal representation. He can use his resources and years of knowledge and experience to find the defense that most effectively protects you.
What Criminal Charges Are Associated With Road Rage?
Road rage can lead a driver to exhibit impulsive and dangerous behaviors, potentially endangering all others on the road. Depending on the exact behaviors, a driver could be charged with crimes such as:
Reckless Driving
Road rage can be charged as reckless driving, which is the offense of operating a vehicle recklessly to the point of having complete disregard for safety, other people, or property. If an individual has multiple prior offenses in a period of 24 months, the criminal consequences increase.
Aggressive Driving
Road rage is also often charged as aggressive driving, although aggressive driving does not require a driver to appear aggressive to be charged. Aggressive driving occurs when your driving is a hazard to another individual or vehicle, you either speed or excessively speed, and commit at least two of the following actions:
- Failing to obey traffic signs and signals
- Passing another vehicle by driving offroad or off the main roadway
- Changing lanes unsafely
- Tailgating or otherwise following too closely
- Failing to yield the right-of-way
When a driver is speeding, being a hazard, and committing two other traffic violations, they can be charged with aggressive driving. The penalties for this offense increase if the driver has had another violation in the past 24 months.
Endangerment
Endangerment is the offense of recklessly causing another person to experience significant risk to their personal well-being, including physical injury or death. The danger for others on the road is much more significant when the offender is in a vehicle. This can result in endangerment being charged as a felony.
Assault
While many road rage offenses occur while both drivers are in their vehicles, an altercation can escalate to drivers exiting their vehicles. This should be avoided at all costs because of how much it can heighten the conflict between parties. In some cases, road rage can result in assault charges.
Assault is charged when an individual recklessly causes physical injury to another person, intentionally puts an individual in fear of physical injury, or touches an individual while intending to injure or provoke them.
Aggravated Assault
Several factors can turn an assault charge into an aggravated assault charge, and many of these can occur in road rage altercations. Some of the potential aggravating factors include:
- Causing serious injury to another person
- The use of a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon
- Causing temporary but serious disfigurement to another person
- Causing impairment or the loss of a person’s organ or other body part
- The victim being a firefighter, officer, teacher, healthcare employee, park ranger, public defender, or another public employee, and the offender knew this
- The use of a simulated dangerous weapon
- Strangulation in the assault
These aggravating factors can make an assault charge become a felony.
Misconduct Involving Weapons
These are offenses involving deadly weapons. These are any weapons that are designed to be lethal, but this category does not include pocket knives. However, it may also include prohibited weapons. Deadly weapon misconduct includes concealed carrying without a permit, while underage, or while being a prohibited possessor. Prohibited weapon misconduct includes the possession or use of any prohibited weapons.
Call Dworman Law Today To
Protect Your Rights.
Talk to us at Dworman Law by calling 480-256-2449. We serve
clients in Phoenix and all throughout Arizona.
Felony Road Rage Penalties and Consequences
Certain road rage offenses can lead to felony penalties. Understanding the criminal consequences of these offenses is crucial if you are being charged. The relevant felonies include:
- Class 6 Felony: A Class 6 felony has a presumptive sentence and a maximum sentence. Endangerment can be charged as a Class 6 felony when there is a significant risk of death. Misconduct involving weapons is a Class 6 felony when the deadly weapon is in someone’s immediate control and used in a serious or violent offense. This offense is also a Class 6 felony when a deadly weapon is defaced.
- Class 4 Felony: A Class 4 felony has a presumptive sentence, with a maximum sentence and a minimum sentence. Misconduct involving weapons is a Class 4 felony when the individual possessing the weapon is a prohibited person, such as a convicted felon. Aggravated assault is charged as a Class 4 felony when the offense results in disfigurement or the loss of an organ or another body part.
- Class 3 Felony: A Class 3 felony has a presumptive sentence, but it could result in a range of imprisonment terms. Aggravated assault causing serious physical injury, with the use of a deadly weapon, dangerous instrument, or simulated deadly weapon, is charged as a Class 3 felony.
- Class 2 Felony: Class 2 felonies have a presumptive sentence and a maximum sentence. A Class 3 felony aggravated assault offense becomes a Class 2 felony offense if the victim is under the age of 15 or a law enforcement employee or officer.
The maximum sentences for felony convictions can be increased if the offense is aggravated. Felonies also have a fine that is fixed and set by the court, and it cannot exceed $150,000.
Other Consequences of Road Rage Convictions
Felony offenses for road rage have other consequences besides criminal penalties. They may result in the suspension of your driver’s license, high insurance rates for several years, and required anger management courses.
If you are convicted, you will have a criminal record. This can have collateral consequences on many areas of your life, potentially for the rest of your life. A criminal record can:
- Harm your current employment.
- Affect your future employment opportunities.
- Bar you from certain fields of employment.
- Affect your acceptance to higher education.
- Affect certain housing applications.
- Affect your ability to get loans.
The criminal and collateral consequences of felony convictions are not to be taken lightly. It is crucial that you find an attorney who knows how to handle cases involving these offenses and how they relate to road rage. A legal professional can help you navigate the criminal justice system and potentially avoid these long-term consequences.
What Are the Potential Defenses Against Road Rage Charges?
Determining which defense strategy is right for you will depend on the specific offense and the circumstances of your arrest. Your defense attorney can listen to your account of events and investigate your situation to determine the likely ideal defenses. Some potential defenses against road rage charges for aggressive driving or even assault could include:
- Self-defense or defense of others. If you are charged with assault, but you were acting with reasonable force to protect yourself or others from immediate harm, this is a valid defense.
- Insufficient evidence. For the prosecution to convict you, they must prove you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If there is not enough evidence to support this burden of proof, you cannot be convicted. Witnesses to an assault or reckless driving may not be reliable. Your defense attorney should take a proactive approach to this type of defense by getting any evidence that is not credible or was secured illegally dismissed.
- Mitigation by provocation. One defense may be explaining the actions taken by the other drivers, which then led to and provoked the road rage incident. This may limit the severity of your penalties in some cases.
- Constitutional violations. These can include violations by officers during the arrest, gathering of evidence, and investigation. If an arrest or evidence was secured because of illegal rights violations or an officer failed to read you your rights, then certain evidence could be inadmissible. If enough evidence is inadmissible, the prosecution may drop the charges against you.
- The assailant knew that the victim was a teacher, doctor, teacher, judicial officer, law enforcer, or firefighter.
FAQs
Is Road Rage a Criminal Offense in Arizona?
No, road rage is not explicitly a criminal offense in Arizona, but it can be an aspect of a criminal charge of aggressive driving or reckless driving.
- Reckless driving is the offense of operating a vehicle with reckless disregard for the safety of others or property. It is charged as a Class 2 misdemeanor, and it can also result in the suspension of a driver’s license.
- Aggressive driving involves driving in a manner that causes an immediate hazard while also speeding and committing more than one other violation, such as unsafe lane changes or tailgating.
What Is the Difference Between Road Rage and Aggressive Driving?
Road rage is violent behavior on the road, which can sometimes cause or result from aggressive driving, while aggressive driving is operating a vehicle in a dangerous way. Aggressive driving does not require road rage.
Road rage in itself is not a crime, although numerous other offenses could be charged, depending on what an individual does during their road rage episode. Aggressive driving is a criminal offense, resulting in Class 1 misdemeanor penalties if convicted. These offenses are more serious than traffic violations.
Why Does Road Rage Happen?
Road rage can happen for numerous reasons, and these can range from behaviors like yelling at others to criminal offenses like brandishing a firearm. Individuals can suffer road rage due to:
- Frustration in traffic
- Running late for something
- Dealing with stress in their personal life
- Being prone to anger in general
Road rage also happens because individuals feel more anonymous behind the wheel, and other drivers are also anonymous. This can lead to heightened emotional reactions and less sympathy for others.
What Is the Statute for Road Rage in Arizona?
There is no statute for road rage in Arizona. However, depending on what someone does when they are engaging in road rage, there are numerous potential criminal offenses they could be charged with. Some of these include:
- Reckless driving, Title 28-693
- Aggressive driving, Title 28-695
- Disorderly conduct with a weapon, Title 13-2904
- Misconduct with a weapon, Title 13-3102
- Endangerment, Title 13-1201
- Assault, Title 13-1203
- Aggravated assault or aggravated assault with a weapon, Title 13-1204
Call Dworman Law Today To
Protect Your Rights.
Talk to us at Dworman Law by calling 480-256-2449. We serve
clients in Phoenix and all throughout Arizona.
Good people make mistakes. At Dworman Law, we work hard to ensure that one bad night does not destroy your future.
