A Maryland man is facing a serious felony charge after police say he got out of his car and struck a pedestrian.
The apparent road rage incident happened just after 10 a.m. Friday on Shirlington Road near the W&OD Trail, between the Shirlington and Green Valley neighborhoods. It was captured on traffic camera video, below.
“The male victim was walking in the crosswalk when he became involved in a verbal dispute with the male suspect who was driving in the area,” said today’s Arlington County Police Department crime report. “The male suspect allegedly then exited his vehicle and struck the victim, causing him to fall to the ground. The suspect then re-entered his vehicle and fled the scene.”
Video shows the victim starting to cross Shirlington Road as the suspect drove by. It’s unclear what prompted the driver to get out of his SUV and confront the victim, but after a brief encounter the victim is seen falling to the street, apparently unconscious.
After the suspect drives off, other drivers and pedestrians are then seen coming to the victim’s aid, before police and medics arrive a few minutes later. The victim was bleeding from the head when first responders arrived, according to scanner traffic.
Around 11 a.m., the suspect’s vehicle was spotted on northbound I-395 near Boundary Channel Drive and was stopped by police.
The suspect, identified as a 40-year-old Landover, Maryland man, was arrested and is now charged with Aggravated Malicious Wounding. He could face a decades-long prison sentence if convicted on that charge, which is specified for instances in which the victim is “severely injured and is caused to suffer permanent and significant physical impairment.”
Photo and video via traffic cam/SafetyVid
