Holiday Road Rage: Man Smashes Woman's Windshield

Police say holiday stress can be factor in road rage

Not everyone has the holiday spirit.

Just ask Jennifer Cabibi, whose windshield was smashed by a man after she tapped her horn at him.

She was driving outside of a fast-food restaurant near her Plano apartment on Nov. 17 when a man jumped out of his sport utility vehicle and banged on her windshield with his bare hands.

His vehicle had darted in front of her.

"I thought we were going to collide, so I honked my horn," Cabibi said. "It was just a little, like, 'Hey, I'm here. Don't hit me.' It wasn't anything aggressive, like an 'I hate you' honk."

But the man in the SUV didn't take it that way.

Cabibi said he jumped out of his SUV and immediately started cursing at her. Then he started to smash her windshield with his bare hands.

"One, two, and then just something clicked, and it was just like he just lost it right there and kept going and going and going," Cabibi said. "His face was like a monster. His eyes were bulged. He was just so angry, and you could see his teeth grinding as he was so pissed and hit it."

Cabibi said she was frightened, and when the man stopped, mustered up enough courage to yell, "You're going to pay for this."

" I pulled my window up and I was like, 'Uh-oh, this is going to be the end of it,'" she said. "And that's when he said, 'I'm not paying for anything,' and then got in his car and left."

The man did more than $500 in damage to her car.

Cabibi called Plano police, and officers found the man eating inside the same restaurant where the incident occurred. She said he was issued a misdemeanor ticket.

Officer David Tilley said incidents of road rage go up slightly around the holidays, especially around shopping malls and other high-traffic areas. Tilley said the stress of the holidays plays a part.

"We've increased our patrol response in these shopping areas during this time of the year," Tilley said.

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