CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A North Carolina woman says she and her husband were left terrified after a minor traffic incident escalated into a violent road rage attack, with the other driver kicking their car, pounding on the windows, and trying to force open the door while the couple sat locked inside.
Elizabeth Rodriguez and her husband were heading home to Cherryville after watching Charlotte FC win at Bank of America Stadium on Friday night when the confrontation unfolded near the Interstate 85 south ramp on Brookshire Boulevard in west Charlotte.
According to Rodriguez, a red car first pulled in front of them before rear-ending their vehicle. The other driver then continued ahead. When the couple caught up in traffic to photograph the license plate, the woman got out of her car without warning and approached.
“Without warning, she gets out of her car and she approaches our vehicle and commences to start beating on the windows,” Rodriguez told local reporters. Video recorded from inside the SUV captures the woman, dressed in pink, kicking the vehicle repeatedly, striking it, and yanking on the door handle while cursing. Rodriguez can be heard on the phone with 911 during the incident, describing the attacker as “crazy” as the woman returns to the car again.
“Thankfully, my door was locked, and she couldn’t get in,” Rodriguez said. She added that she feared the woman might retrieve a weapon. “I was so scared. I was so scared.”The attacker eventually fled the scene, leaving visible dents on the hood and driver’s side door of Rodriguez’s white vehicle. Police arrived shortly afterward but the suspect was already gone.
Rodriguez said the ordeal left her so shaken that she canceled concert tickets for the following night in Charlotte, too afraid to return to the city.“I want to have her apprehended,” she said. “Someone who is that unstable does not need to be able to just walk away from this and never meet any type of consequences.”
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officials have confirmed the case remains an active and ongoing investigation. As of the latest updates, no arrests have been announced, and the suspect has not been publicly identified.
The video of the attack has circulated widely online, drawing attention to the incident and prompting calls for the woman to be located and held accountable. Road rage experts advise drivers targeted in such situations to remain in their vehicles with doors locked, call 911, and avoid confrontation whenever possible.
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