Mother Meets Unforeseen Tragedy From Road Rage Incident

One never expects to meet adversity on a typical day of picking up the kids from school, and running errands.

However, if there is one thing that the media has taught us, it’s that horror can strike at any moment, even when we least expect it.

One mom of three boys, ages 8, 12, and 13, thought an aggressive exchange at an intersection would end once she made her turn, but she was wrong, and the consequences have changed her life forever.

9News reported:

The suspect in a road rage shooting followed a vehicle occupied by a mom and her three children for several blocks before shooting the mom and two of the children point-blank in an office parking lot, a Westminster police affidavit reveals.”

When the family arrived at the office complex where their dentist office is located, they exited the vehicle to try to go inside.

As Megan Bigelow, 41, got out of the car with her boys, the other party of the road rage incident got out of his car, approached the victims, and began firing.

Bigelow and two of her three sons, ages 8 and 13, were shot multiple times. The disturbed young man was seen walking away and then returned to the 13-year-old boy to fire at him again, according to the affidavit.

The raged shooter made “eye contact” with an innocent bystander in the parking lot who was sitting in his truck with his daughter, which prompted him to begin shooting at the truck as well, according to the Huffington Post.

John Gale, 40, put the truck in reverse and sped out of the parking lot, but not before taking some gunshots to the arm, according to 9News. Thankfully, the 9-year-old daughter was unharmed, and her father is expected to recover.

Bigelow’s middle child, the 12-year-old son was unharmed. When the shooting began he “fled the scene”, according to 9News, saving his life.

Sadly, the 13-year-old boy was declared dead at the hospital. The 8-year-old young boy and Bigelow are in critical condition.

Jeremy John Webster, 23, was arrested not long after the shooting in Castle Rock, Colorado without incident.

Upon being captured, Webster admitted to shooting at Bigelow and her sons, saying he was just put on a new medication for a mental illness that day, according to 9News.

It seems that the disturbed young shooter thought that his claim to mental illness was a justifiable cause for his heinous crimes; one would hope the courts will see otherwise.

Webster obviously knew he had a mental condition that had the potential to affect his behavior, and should have taken precautions to prevent situations like the one that occurred from happening.

In a press release, the Westminster Police Department investigator Cheri Spottke said, “It appears as if this incident stemmed from a road rage.”

Bigelow was driving her 3 boys to a routine dental appointment, according to the family’s GoFundMe page, when she was brutally shot, and her son’s life taken.

It’s safe to assume she had no idea the events that would transpire after having an in the moment conflict with a stranger over insignificant driving behaviors.

Spottke confirmed in the press release that the victims and the offender did not know each other.

The “altercation”, as 9News calls it, at the intersection turned out to be more than the family bargained for. This is why road rage incidents are never worth engaging in.

Road rage is officially defined by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as:

when a driver commits moving traffic offenses so as to endanger other persons or property; an assault with a motor vehicle or other dangerous weapon by the operator or passenger of one motor vehicle on the operator or passengers of another motor vehicle”.

Rising statistics on road rage incidents goes to show that removing yourself from the dangerous situation is the only way to ensure safety.

The NHTSA and the Auto Vantage auto club have compiled some shocking statistics to make the public aware of the dangers of road rage in today’s society:

◦           66% of traffic fatalities are caused by aggressive driving.

            ◦           37% of aggressive driving incidents involve a firearm.

            ◦           Males under the age of 19 are the most likely to exhibit road rage.

            ◦           Half of drivers who are on the receiving end of an aggressive behavior, such as horn honking, a rude gesture, or tailgating admit to responding with aggressive behavior themselves.

            ◦           Over a seven year period, 218 murders and 12,610 injuries were attributed to road rage.

One scary statistic worth noting is:

            ◦           2% of drivers admit to trying to run an aggressor off the road! 

Having someone cut you off in your lane while driving, or honk excessively when they want you to move out of the way is surely frustrating.

However, retaliating with gestures, yelling out the window, or aggressive driving only further infuriates the angered driver; creating a dangerous scenario for you and your passengers.

According to 9News, Webster is facing charges of first-degree murder after deliberation with intent, first-degree murder with extreme indifference, first-degree assault and criminal attempt to commit a Class 1 felony.

While Webster is facing a slew of charges, it won’t bring back Bigelow’s son. Think twice before you let road rage take over, and weigh the benefits to potential loss.

Please let us know in the comments section if you have experienced a road rage incident that ended in a scary situation.