Family says driver broke their windows with a knife after road rage incident



MOUNTLAKE TERRACE, Wash. - Mountlake Terrace police are investigating a dangerous road rage attack. A family says a driver rammed their car as they got off the freeway, then got out of his vehicle and came at them with a knife. They escaped unharmed but they’re shaken up by the assault and confused about why they were targeted.

“There's red paint here, you can kind of see it and you can see the markings right here,” says Claudine Fisher as she shows what an irate driver did to her car.

Claudine told Q13 News she and her family had just exited I-5 Saturday afternoon, when a man driving a red car came right up behind her on the off-ramp.

“He flew around me, got in outside lane,” she says. “So I got in the middle one, but I stayed back. I didn't know what that guy's problem was.”

When she turned onto 236th Street, she says he braked suddenly. She kept driving straight in another lane.

“Then all of a sudden, he speeds up, bashes into my car.”

Claudine says the other driver got out and started breaking her back windows.

“He had a big huge knife in his hand, a hunting knife, like you see in the Rambo movies,” she says.

“When he broke that first window, I didn't know if he was going to come in and try to do something to one of us in the car,” adds Claudine’s daughter Lisa, who had been sitting in the backseat.

She didn’t recognize the man and didn’t remember seeing him on the freeway, so she’s not sure why he started attacking them.

“I just can't comprehend it,” she says, holding back tears.

Claudine says it was scary, having her whole family in the car with her.

“I was on the phone, I was so nervous, I couldn't even get to my dialing button to dial 911.”

The man took off before police could get there. But Claudine’s family did get a picture of his Honda Civic. They’re hoping that will help officers track him down.

“It feels violating” says Lisa. “I’m glad we're all ok physically. But until it's taken care of and he’s caught, it's not going to be ok.”

They describe the suspect as a white male with sandy blonde hair, about 5’8. He had a stocky build, and was wearing baggy clothing. They say he was driving a red 1995 2-door Honda Civic. Anyone with information on the suspect or car is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.