Arcata Police Searching for Hit and Run Driver Who Intentionally Struck the Victim
Background photo by Oliver Cory
About 2:38 p.m. today, a man is believed to have been intentionally struck with a vehicle by another driver in a case of intentional assault, Arcata Police Chief Brian Ahearn told us in a phone interview about 3:10 p.m.
The victim was driving his vehicle with his adult son in the car when he believed he was cut off by a driver in another vehicle, Ahearn said. The victim followed the suspect vehicle to southbound H St where it crossed over Samoa.
The suspect driver stopped his vehicle. “The victim got out his car to get the suspect vehicle’s license plate,” Ahearn said. “The suspect sped toward the victim striking the victim who then rolled up on the hood of the suspect vehicle and rolled off the vehicle.”
Ahearn said the victim had moderate injuries. that were non-life-threatening. He was transported while conscious and alert to Mad River Community Hospital.
The suspect vehicle, a white hatchback which possibly has window damage, was last seen heading south on H Street.
Law enforcement is searching for the suspect vehicle and the driver. The driver is described as a white male adult with short brown hair last seen wearing a black t-shirt. They are also looking for his female passenger who has brown hair with blonde highlights.
If you have any information, please contact Arcata Police at (707) 822-2428.
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Road rage, following someone, jumping out when they pull over, and getting hit by the car?
Before all these video games, people drove nicer.
I’m going to blame video games and marijuana use for the cause of this story.
I’m not going to blame marijuana for this, most people are not using marijuana then having road rage incidents. Maybe a bag of Cheetos incident! lol
I do blame society, and our collective acceptance of being hateful and mean. Life shouldn’t be this way, society shouldn’t be this way. It is more than sad.
Well said!
Non-native, I agree.
Sanctuary city problems. Ban cars.
Ok, Reefer Madness.
You think marijuana makes you uptight? Not.
Wow, really!? Ummmm…..stop now….
Any police will tell you to never confront the other person in a road rage type encounter. Stay in your car, try to get a photo or description.
If the victim had stayed in his car he would not now be in the hospital.
I am NOT victim blaming. I am offering advice
How does the Chief know why the “victim” got out of his car?
Presumably the victim said so.
Intent verified how, and by whom?
Next questions involve why the Chief is assuming any of the other “victim” statements objectively correspond to facts.
You keep putting victim in quotes.. lmfao… he was literally struck by a car intentionally. Pretty sure he’s a victim.
It’s customary to put other people’s words in quotation marks.
The Chief used the term, “victim.” As in, “sped toward the victim.”
From the blog post and interview transcript, I’m not aware of any forensic evidence that supports biased terminology.
The guy who got out of the car may be guilty of multiple traffic violations, false arrest and trying to pull some Starsky and Hutch hood jumping hero stunt.
Maybe “sped toward” was really resuming normal driving with advance verbal warning, cautiously, under the speed limit, in the flow of traffic, while not wanting to be detained by a threatening assailant who pursued the “suspect” and charged into the roadway—and who could easily charge back out if he wanted.
What I’m saying is that the language of the Chief reflects acceptance of one side of the story. Maybe the term “victim” is appropriate and the entirety of the “victim” statement is true.
This case hasn’t gone to court yet, and we don’t know if there has been any investigation beyond one field interview with one party.
We do however know that one person was injured and a driver left the scene and didn’t attempt to contact law enforcement after striking someone with their vehicle.
We still don’t know what happened with how the “moderate(ly) injur(ed)” party contacted the “suspect vehicle,” although the Chief seems to think he knows. How does he know? Cameras?
Maybe the Chief’s language was chosen to leverage maximum public assistance with continued investigation.
Is it possible that the “suspect” hasn’t checked in with this blog yet, after maybe having a maniac chase him down and jump on his hood? Is it possible the “suspect” needs a moment to contact his attorney prior to walking into a trap?
So how are you
Dead burglar is still a “victim.”
Only a punk ass loser intentionally hits somebody with their car after cutting them off.
Isn’t this assault with a deadly weapon….
Evil guns are deadly weapons .
Cars are more dangerous than guns. I’ve been hit by a cars, but never shot, and the only gun that pointed at me was a cops weapon. Do you know math or read the news?
One would ask the “victim” why he needed to get out of his car to get the license number. More like he got out of his car looking for some shit and found it and ended up a hood ornament.
Ooh…kay…so the victim, “believed,” he’d been cut off by another driver, so he chased him down to a (presumably) red light, jumped out of his car, “to get the suspect (suspected of what?) vehicle’s license plate,” and was impacted by the driver of the, “suspect vehicle,” who then sped away.
Seems like there could be more to this story.
The “victim”, who “believed” he was cut off by another vehicle, rather than just let it go like a mature adult, decided to follow the other car an unspecified distance, then got out of the car and approached the other vehicle…to get its license plate number? Neither the victim nor his adult son were able to get the plate number, either while following it or after it stopped? Reads like road rage.
Lesson in this case is, don’t flee from the scene or you’re presumed guilty until and unless you can prove otherwise. The other driver should have called the cops immediately after fleeing the scene of somebody approaching them in a hostile manner, after following them. You’re allowed to defend yourself in a hostile situation, and this one reads like road rage. If a person was coming at you quickly and aggressively from the front of your vehicle, your only means of preventing potential harm to yourself would be to drive forward. Otherwise, if somebody attacked you from outside while you’re sitting in your car, you’re exceptionally vulnerable and unable to defend yourself.
True!
I don’t buy this story. Sounds much more like the driver was trying to pick a fight, and learned why you don’t go doing that. Hell, this could be justifiable self-defense – someone starts following your vehicle, then as soon as you come to a stop, they jump out and approach you in a threatening manner? Getting out to get someone’s license plate makes no sense whatsoever – what are you going to do, call the cops and complain that someone cut you off, and here’s the license plate number? Was there an actual accident and he thought they were stopping to exchange insurance info?
Bushytails…u drive away!….u dont drive into the person! Lol
Everybody forgot this was an Arcata incident…BLAME TRUMP or have they shut off the default response ? Lol
huh? whatever
The victim could have been shot down in a stand you’re ground state
Road rage is a killer
Speaking from experience in trying to write down someone’s license plate number, I’d say that it’s time for the person, that got hit by the car, to get a dash cam.
In Texas where bad drivers are as plentiful as gun owners they don’t seem to have as many road rage incidents but when they do there’s usually carnage and death.
I was just telling someone the other day about coming out of Lubbock, Texas, on Ave. Q, running the gauntlet through that four-lane, full contact stock car race they called a roundabout, making it to the Highway 84 on-ramp, giving it the gas to get up to highway speed, glancing back over my shoulder to check on traffic, then looking forward, only to find a fucking Texan stopped on the on-ramp, waiting for traffic to clear before entering the freeway.
Jee-sus Christ.
Fucking Texans.
Edit to add: after telling that story, I Googled Lubbock’s highway system, and lo, and behold! They’ve replaced that roundabout with a regular freeway interchange.
Who’d have guessed Texans could be so progressive?
Google -Texas accident with 4 old ladies in an Impala- but only if you feel like laughing harder than you have laughed in a looong looong time.
Not understanding. Why was the “victim” in front of the “suspect’s” car?
If he followed the suspect wouldn’t he be behind the guy or maybe beside him on the one-way? Should easily have been able to read a plate from the rear—they usually have lights.
I suggest the victim jumped ugly with the wrong guy. He’s lucky the guy didn’t do a burn out on his nuts as he left the area.
Maybe the dude learned not to get out on foot and dick with a guy in a 2,000 pound car.
I will bet that this alleged victim wins the Darwin Award within a few years, running down perceived traffic slights like this.
It sounds as if it was just his bad luck that he picked his argument with someone similar to himself.
What kind of an ass follows a car for cutting them off? Like the cops fucking care. The victim was aggressive and weird. The other guy may or may not have intentionally hit him. Lots of nut jobs jump on hoods to fake being hit. Not sure who’s right or wrong – but the guy that was the “victim” was out of line completely. Take a chill pill, dude. Now the guy who may or may not have cut him off on purpose, screws up by driving off and not calling 911 about the aggressive nut job.