A 6-year-old boy was fatally shot in a road rage incident in Southern California. On Friday, 21st May 2021 Joanna Cloonan was driving her son Aiden Cloonan to his kindergarten when another driver shot him and killed him in an isolated road rage car incident.

The boy was sitting in the backseat of the car when an unidentified person driving a white sedan shot at the car. Joanna said that when she was driving Aiden to school on Friday morning in Orange a white sedan cut her off on the 55 Freeway. As she started to merge away from them she heard a loud noise.

After the shot, she heard Aiden say “Mommy, my tummy hurts”. She saw blood on her son’s stomach and noticed him turning blue. She pulled over the car and tried to put pressure on the gunshot wounds while calling 911, but Aiden was already losing a lot of blood. He was soon rushed to the hospital however unfortunately he was declared dead on arrival.

The mother of the 6-year-old is pleading for justice and asking people who have any idea about the incident to come forward and give information as the shooter is still not apprehended and out at large.

A California Highway Patrol officials have described the shooting as an isolated road rage incident between the mother and another driver.

They have asked other drivers who were around the scene of the shooting in Orange, 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles, from 7:55 to 8:15 a.m. to come forward if they have any information on the shooting or the shooter. The freeway was shut down for many hours post the shooting as investigators searched for evidence.

Los Angeles is considered to be the worst city for road rage incidents in the United States. A recent study showed that people in Los Angeles were most likely to experience road rage incidents, especially on Fridays, which is the worst time to be on the road.

What is Road rage?

Road Rage is defined as “Aggressive, angry conduct by a vehicle operator navigating the road.”
The conduct includes impolite behaviour, making rude gestures, hurling verbal insults, making physical threats, or targeting another driver with dangerous driving with the intention to intimidate them or release frustration. Road rage incidents can lead to arguments, attacks, and crashes resulting in serious physical injuries or sometimes death. Road rage can be considered as an extreme case of aggressive driving.

Facts about Road Rage

As per the figures published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the facts about road rage are scary, both in Los Angeles and across the country:

  • Road rage is the main cause behind 2/3rd of all traffic fatalities
  • Though most of the road rage incidents involve shouting, making threatening gestures, abusing etc., around 37% of the incidents involve at least one firearm
  • Young boys particularly in their teens tend to display higher tendencies of road rage
  • 50% of victims of road rage victims admit responding with similar behaviour

Ask a Lawyer

If you or your family member has been a victim of a road rage incident, filing a claim is a highly challenging and complex process. It is important to have an experienced lawyer represent you and file the lawsuit and claim on your behalf.

Get in touch with one of our licensed and experienced lawyers at Khashan Law, we have several years of experience helping victims recover the compensation they deserve.

We have successfully negotiated numerous settlements and won favourable jury verdicts. Contact us at 951.461.2387 for a free and confidential consultation today.