Man arrested on three charges after Austin road rage incident
According to court records, Austin Police arrested 25-year-old Isac Villanueva on charges of driving while intoxicated, violating a city ordinance and, harassment of a public servant after spitting in an officer's face, Wednesday night.
Villanueva is on a $10,000 bond right now.
FOX 7 Austin spoke to his mother on the phone Wednesday. She declined an on camera interview but she says Villanueva doesn't wish to comment further and he's doing okay.
Read Driver arrested after road rage incident caught on camera
25-year-old Isac Villanueva was arrested after we caught this on video. Villanueva is burning rubber as the tires on his silver BMW keeps spinning after hitting another car. The driver of the white SUV didn't want to be identified but she says this was the second time he hit her yesterday.
"As soon as the light turned red he started doing this bumpy stop start lurch thing through the intersection running the red light and that's when I really started watching him and he was not stable and not driving safe,” the victim says.
Villanueva honked for about 5 minutes and refused to stop. Moments later he ended up backing into another car then slamming into a barricade and speeding off.
According to an arrest affidavit, Wednesday night around 9:30 Isac Villanueva-- was under arrest for driving while intoxicated. He also racked up a charge for harassing a public servant.
According to the affidavit, two officers from the Austin Police Department were watching him until he was medically discharged. Once he was discharged the arrest affidavit says medical staff and hospital security assisted APD in transporting Villanueva to the patrol car, he spat in one of the officer's face.
FOX 7 Austin reached out to APD for an interview and they were unable to give an official statement, but over the phone they did tell us if you're ever put in a position where someone has road rage to always call 911 if you feel unsafe.
"What would you do in a situation like that? If I were the woman? I don't know I would have to be in the situation. I couldn't say if I was if it hasn't happened to me,” Cody Carey says.
We showed Carey the video of the incident. A few feet away from where he catches the MetroRail.
And while thousands are still talking about this situation online, I reached out to Aceable, a company in Austin that teaches drivers education and defensive driving classes.
Statement from Aceable:
“Here's what we teach in our Drivers Ed and Defensive Driving courses about how to respond when you're the target of road rage:
Don't make eye contact with an aggressive driver who is showing anger towards you. Don't even try to settle the situation with a friendly smile. Either of these could be misinterpreted as a challenge by the driver. Instead, try to put as much space between the two of you while still obeying traffic laws. You can even change routes if it feels like a safer choice to you.
If you believe you're being followed by someone, don't drive home. This lets them know where you live. Do this instead: 1. Stay calm and in control of the situation. 2. Flash your lights and honk your horn so that others on the road notice you and the follower. 3. Drive to a safe spot, like a police station, and do the ol' honk-and-flash again. 4. Don't leave the safe location until you're sure your follower is gone."