Road Rage Legal Recourse

On Sunday, July *, *, my wife and I were driving westbound on Highway * in Ottawa, Ontario. As we approached the Hunt Club exit, I noticed in my rearview mirror that there were four to five cars in the passing lane, which made it impossible for me to move over. Behind me was a car about three to four car lengths back. I was traveling at * km/h in a * km/h zone. A Black Mercedes on the on-ramp was trying to enter the highway, and I couldn’t stop to let it merge without risking an accident. The Mercedes accelerated and cut me off, barely managing to get in front of me. Where I should have been angry, I saw that the driver was frustrated and made rude gestures, showing me his fist and then his middle finger. Scared, I gently applied the brakes. Once the cars in the passing lane cleared, the Mercedes moved into the passing lane (left lane) and slowed down, allowing me to pull up beside him. I noticed that all his passenger-side windows were coming down. I decided not to pass him on the right because I was concerned he might have a weapon. Instead, I slowed down to keep his car in view and in front of me. When he saw I wasn’t overtaking him, he moved back to the right lane in front of me and slammed on his brakes, forcing me to brake hard and move to the shoulder. I told my wife that I’d let him get ahead by about * feet, so I drove partially on the shoulder and then re-entered the right lane to proceed westbound. The driver then started swerving left and right within the right lane (zigzagging), crossing the median and onto the shoulder. By this time, we had passed the Walkey Road exit. I told my wife we’d get off at the next exit but that I’d pretend to head towards Ottawa, exiting the Innes Road exit. I believed he had passed the Innes Road exit and that was the end of it. I signaled, checked my blind spot, and exited at Innes Road, turning right. When he saw I was exiting, he sharply cut between me and the guardrail, crossing the solid white lines and cutting me off again, another close call. The Innes exit leads to a left turn at the traffic lights to go west on Innes. Before the lights, there’s a right turn onto a small ramp to go east on Innes. I told my wife I’d make him think I was turning left at the lights, causing him to overshoot the right ramp. I then turned right immediately when I saw he had missed the right lane. It worked, but in my rearview mirror, I saw him reversing back onto the Innes exit to catch up to me and tailgate me. At that point, I told my wife to call * because I believed he wanted to fight. I decided to stop at a nearby gas station where there were cameras and people around, hoping to find witnesses. I drove into the Esso Circle K gas station, parked under the canopy at the far end closest to the car wash, and started fueling my vehicle. Now, my wife was ready with her phone video. The Mercedes was now on the other side of the island, one vehicle back, effectively putting him behind me but on the opposite side of the island. I filled up my vehicle with gas, resigning myself to be silent during the entire incident, and my wife started recording the situation on her phone. The driver seemed indifferent, either putting very little gas in or faking the purchase of fuel, sizing up the situation, he was stalling then proceeding into the store. When he returned he went directly to his car. He went to the back door, of the driver’s side. He then went to his car door, then he walked about thirty feet diagonally in my direction yelling obscenities. “Why are you filming me, have some respect”, he says. Then while looking at me and addressing me, he spat on me, hitting my upper left chest, under my chin, and spraying my wife’s arm. He then told us “You want to record, record that” as he turned around and walked back to his car. At that moment, I told my wife to call * and repeated call *. I had had enough. This was caught on our video/audio. Once at his car, again, he began yelling at us, using offensive language. He called my wife a “French whore” and me a “little bitch.”. He continued to threaten us, saying “I’ll fuck you up” to me, and “That goes for you too”, as he pointed to my wife. A lady on the opposite side of the island across from me told him “Leave them alone and get in your car and leave”. He then moved his car to block my path. Leaving his position to go around the lady and across to my side blocking my path. I had finished getting gas and was already in my vehicle. He continued to threaten us, saying, “I’ll kill both of you.”, and yelling homophobic slurs. Then he rolled his vehicle to the passenger side of our car and unloaded again. The entire ordeal lasted about eleven minutes. After the incident, I drove to the police department on Elgin Street and filed a report detailing everything that had happened. My last line in my police report was that I feared for my wife’s safety and my own safety. We then went to the gathering we had planOn Sunday, July *, *, my wife and I were driving westbound on Highway * in Ottawa, Ontario. As we approached the Hunt Club exit, I noticed in my rearview mirror that there were four to five cars in the passing lane, which made it impossible for me to move over. Behind me was a car about three to four car lengths back. I was traveling at * km/h in a * km/h zone. A Black Mercedes on the on-ramp was trying to enter the highway, and I couldn’t stop to let it merge without risking an accident. The Mercedes accelerated and cut me off, barely managing to get in front of me. Where I should have been angry, I saw that the driver was frustrated and made rude gestures, showing me his fist and then his middle finger. Scared, I gently applied the brakes. Once the cars in the passing lane cleared, the Mercedes moved into the passing lane (left lane) and slowed down, allowing me to pull up beside him. I noticed that all his passenger-side windows were coming down. I decided not to pass him on the right because I was concerned he might have a weapon. Instead, I slowed down to keep his car in view and in front of me. When he saw I wasn’t overtaking him, he moved back to the right lane in front of me and slammed on his brakes, forcing me to brake hard and move to the shoulder. I told my wife that I’d let him get ahead by about * feet, so I drove partially on the shoulder and then re-entered the right lane to proceed westbound. The driver then started swerving left and right within the right lane (zigzagging), crossing the median and onto the shoulder. By this time, we had passed the Walkey Road exit. I told my wife we’d get off at the next exit but that I’d pretend to head towards Ottawa, exiting the Innes Road exit. I believed he had passed the Innes Road exit and that was the end of it. I signaled, checked my blind spot, and exited at Innes Road, turning right. When he saw I was exiting, he sharply cut between me and the guardrail, crossing the solid white lines and cutting me off again, another close call. The Innes exit leads to a left turn at the traffic lights to go west on Innes. Before the lights, there’s a right turn onto a small ramp to go east on Innes. I told my wife I’d make him think I was turning left at the lights, causing him to overshoot the right ramp. I then turned right immediately when I saw he had missed the right lane. It worked, but in my rearview mirror, I saw him reversing back onto the Innes exit to catch up to me and tailgate me. At that point, I told my wife to call * because I believed he wanted to fight. I decided to stop at a nearby gas station where there were cameras and people around, hoping to find witnesses. I drove into the Esso Circle K gas station, parked under the canopy at the far end closest to the car wash, and started fueling my vehicle. Now, my wife was ready with her phone video. The Mercedes was now on the other side of the island, one vehicle back, effectively putting him behind me but on the opposite side of the island. I filled up my vehicle with gas, resigning myself to be silent during the entire incident, and my wife started recording the situation on her phone. The driver seemed indifferent, either putting very little gas in or faking the purchase of fuel, sizing up the situation, he was stalling then proceeding into the store. When he returned he went directly to his car. He went to the back door, of the driver’s side. He then went to his car door, then he walked about thirty feet diagonally in my direction yelling obscenities. “Why are you filming me, have some respect”, he says. Then while looking at me and addressing me, he spat on me, hitting my upper left chest, under my chin, and spraying my wife’s arm. He then told us “You want to record, record that” as he turned around and walked back to his car. At that moment, I told my wife to call * and repeated call *. I had had enough. This was caught on our video/audio. Once at his car, again, he began yelling at us, using offensive language. He called my wife a “French whore” and me a “little bitch.”. He continued to threaten us, saying “I’ll fuck you up” to me, and “That goes for you too”, as he pointed to my wife. A lady on the opposite side of the island across from me told him “Leave them alone and get in your car and leave”. He then moved his car to block my path. Leaving his position to go around the lady and across to my side blocking my path. I had finished getting gas and was already in my vehicle. He continued to threaten us, saying, “I’ll kill both of you.”, and yelling homophobic slurs. Then he rolled his vehicle to the passenger side of our car and unloaded again. The entire ordeal lasted about eleven minutes. After the incident, I drove to the police department on Elgin Street and filed a report detailing everything that had happened. My last line in my police report was that I feared for my wife’s safety and my own safety. We then went to the gathering we had planned. That night, I couldn’t sleep at all. ned. That night, I couldn’t sleep at all.

what would be key questions for my key witness...who recorded the event

wow...one question

in small claims court, do I have a good claim for the maximum

please tell me more

why consult with a lawyer...let us finish what we started

what would I claim in small claims court

- Personal Injury: Physical or emotional harm caused to you and your wife. I was psychologically and emotionally abused and spat on - Property Damage: If any damage occurred to your vehicle. NONE - Nuisance: For causing discomfort and inconvenience. that statement is true