Auto safety may not mean personal safety

The Tazer remembers well a quaint old driver's ed film wherein the instructor liberally honked his way through LA. At a parked motorist who was about to exit, beep. At a motorist who was pointing out of a driveway, beep. At a motorist that was contemplating a right on red, beep. At motorist after other motorist for the purpose of announcing his presence, beep. At darn near everything on that pulldown movie screen, beep.

Fast forward to today, and you'd think that the car horn was more than the equivalent of "The Bird" and some angry words. It's supposed to be a safety device to call attention when just eyesight won't cut it, but nowadays it seems more like a liability...

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Driver critical after Richmond shooting

By Karl Fischer
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

A driver who honked at a van on San Pablo Avenue went to the hospital in critical condition Monday after the other party fired several rounds into his car.

The victim, a 34-year-old man, pulled out of the parking lot of a business heading south on San Pablo about 3 p.m., police said.

Near the corner of San Pablo and Esmond Avenue, the driver became frustrated with a white, full-size van with silver rims sitting ahead of it in a turn lane.

So he honked.

"We're not entirely sure of the sequence of events at this point," Richmond police Sgt. Allwyn Brown said. "So we're not sure what the motive was. All possibilities are open."

If police find that road rage fueled the shooting, it would be the second time in four days that a driver used a firearm to vent anger while driving in the area.

On Thursday night, police investigated a shooting on Interstate 80 near the McBryde Avenue exit that left a 23-year-old Sacramento man critically injured. He remained in critical condition Monday, police said.

In that case, the victim was test-driving a vehicle from an El Cerrito auto dealership with a salesman in the passenger seat when a sport utility vehicle cut him off on the freeway. He honked, and police say the salesman shrugged at the suspect vehicle when it pulled alongside.

The victim's car flipped on the freeway after the shooting. Police found what they believe was the suspect's vehicle abandoned in the unincorporated Tara Hills neighborhood Friday morning.

In Monday's incident, Police say the victim's black Lexus passed the van in a right-hand lane near the intersection and drew gunfire. At least one round struck the driver in the upper body, Lt. Mark Gagan said.

The victim drove about three blocks south on San Pablo before crashing into the west curb in front of a business near the corner of Clinton Avenue. Authorities evacuated nearby buildings because the Lexus began leaking gas, police said, but Richmond firefighters quickly alleviated the danger.

Two passengers in the car were not hurt, Gagan said. Paramedics flew the driver to a regional trauma center, where he was reported in critical condition.

Reach Karl Fischer at 510-262-2728 or kfischer@cctimes.com.