Trucker runs over, kills woman after traffic confrontation

10/31/07
Boston >>>

Sheez, what the hell is wrong with people! I agree, that bad drivers need to be reported, but holy crap! Call his company, call the police, don't confront someone. Isn't that what people are told about road rage?

Here is quote from the victim's daughter, while I feel bad for her loss, her mother would still be here had she not taken such bold (and frankly stupid) actions:

Sarah Bragdon said, "He took away my mother. He took away a grandmother. He took away a wife, he took away a daughter. That's a lot to take away in one day. What he did was wrong. I hope he does a lot of jail time."

Too bad people have yet to figure out a 100+ pound person is not going to stop a truck or car from stopping. Even if your on a horse you will not stop one.
They "say" the driver was told she was in front of him.......I know David cant see me in front of "Gus" unless I am atleast 7 feet in front of him.
Truckers are not meanies nor are they the bad guy but they bear the brunt of the blame. So he passed her big deal why chase him down?
I am sorry she died and I pray for her family as well as the driver and his family.

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Cats purr at the same frequency as an idling diesel engine, about 26 cycles per second.

Well, whether he knew she was there or not, it's pretty well a given that he will be held responsible for running her over (and her subsequent death). And it sounds like this guy may be a hot-head, but I don't know how many of us wouldn't get steamed if we were followed by someone and then confronted.

But I too am sorry she died, and my prayers do go out to her family, but again, her death was COMPLETELY avoidable.

It's only going to get worse as time goes by, populations grow, and ppl keep getting stressed out in life!

The only time 4-wheelers are 'friendly' to me driving CA is when there is an accident ahead, traffic is backed up for miles, they get out and started looking trying to figure out what's going on, then come up to my truck with their 'now' friendly, #### eating smiles and want to know what's happening since I have a CB!! Sometimes I will ignore, but often many will approach me saying that they are also truckers but who are off duty, etc...

#1 we the cdl drivers are suppose to be professionals. we are also suppose to have patiences. why would you pass a person getting ready to make a turn? you don't really know witch way they are going.even if they signal.i don't think anyone will be waiting for you to give you an award for being on time . i'm sure you aren't going to recieve any more pay. no, i'm not perfect either. but i try to have a little patiences.

Remember the 'fact,' that as a trucker you will always lose if you do stuff like this! Even if you as a driver get hit and it's NOT your fault, you will lose time in having to report and resolve the accident as well as deal with the Hwy Patrol! And if it is your fault, well the story goes on and on....

11/5/07

Investigation into apparent road rage incident continues
State police in Vermont hope that by Wednesday, Nov. 7, they’ll have wrapped up their investigation in the death of a woman who was run over by a tractor-trailer following an apparent heated exchange of words with the driver.

According to police, the woman and her adult daughter were upset with the trucker because they thought he almost hit their car when they slowed down for another vehicle.
The two followed trucker Delbert Degree for 21 miles until he pulled off into a lot near St. Johnsbury, VT, that his company uses to drop off trailers.
The daughter told investigators she went to look for a police officer while her mother stood in front of the stopped truck to prevent Degree from leaving.

At that point, the truck pulled out and the woman was killed.
State police detective J.P. Sinclair told “Land Line Now” on XM Satellite Radio that investigators have tried to reconstruct whether Degree could have seen the woman over the hood of his Peterbilt.
And, he said, they’ve gathered other evidence.
“We’re lucky enough to have some eyewitnesses that have been very helpful to us, and of course the construction of this particular parking lot is a dirt surface, so we were fortunate that we were able to gain a lot of evidence and reconstruct a lot of what happened,” Sinclair said.
Degree drives for Karl Johnson Trucking out of Lyndonville, VT. Company owner Karl Johnson told The Associated Press the 41-year-old Degree is extremely distraught and that he would never “in a million years” hurt anyone intentionally.
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_ne.../110507-04.htm

Everyone with sympathy for the driver appears to have overlooked the fact that he was "speeding in town and through a school zone"
Of course this comes from the dead womans daughter but i see similar things happening every day. If the driver was guilty of the above, i hope he never gets out of jail.

All drivers, car/bus/truck/motorcycle have to be accountable for there actions and aggressive driving HAS to be brought under control.

So should he never be let out of jail for speeding through town, or for running the woman over?