Manhunt underway after PA teen shot dead in suspected road rage incident

[TomSea]

Manhunt underway after PA teen shot dead in suspected road rage incident

June 30, 2017   
 

[Courtesy WPVI-TV] (PHILADELPHIA) — A manhunt across three states has been launched after a recent high school graduate was gunned down and killed in an apparent road rage incident earlier this week outside of Philadelphia.

Bianca Nikol Roberson, 18, of West Chester, Pennsylvania, and a man driving a red pickup truck were both merging into the same southbound lane on Route 100 in Chester County on Wednesday when the situation turned deadly, ABC station WPVI-TV reports.

“They were jostling for a position or whatever, and unfortunately this gentleman took it to a degree that was just unconscionable,” West Goshen Police Chief Joe Gleason said, according to WPVI.

Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said that the other driver — described as white, 30 to 40 years of age, medium build and with blonde hair — pulled out a gun and shot Roberson in the head, killing her. Her car then veered off the road and crashed.

Continued: http://www.wwgp1050.com/2017/06/30/manhunt-underway-after-pa-teen-shot-dead-in-suspected-road-rage-incident/

This indeed is a big tragedy, condolences to the bereaved; at the same time, it seems some of these stories are making a point that who is being sought for this crime is white. As if in the cases of black on white crime, we see this same kind of attention in the news to the color of the suspect NOT.

Back to the case:

http://www.wwgp1050.com/2017/06/30/manhunt-underway-after-pa-teen-shot-dead-in-suspected-road-rage-incident/

Surveillance photo of the suspect's red pickup truck
Photo credit: Surveillance

Once the suspect shows up; will the story continue to be reported in this way? Or maybe it won't be whom the press hopes it will be.

[XenaLee]

Watch them try to label this as a hate crime.... since the perp was white and the victim was black.

[TomSea]

Okay, sketch of suspect is out, still may not be conclusive:

TRAFFIC
Sketch released of gunman in teen's road rage killing in Chester Co.

http://6abc.com/traffic/sketch-released-of-gunman-in-teens-road-rage-killing/2164008/

Still, here is BET, Black Entertainment Television:

Teen Brutally Gunned Down by White Man With a Shot to the Head in Horrific Road Rage Incident
Police are still searching for Bianca Nikol Roberson's killer
http://www.bet.com/news/national/2017/06/30/high-school-graduate-killed-by-white-man-in-road-rage-incident.html

Generally, I doubt if we'd see this kind of headline with a person of color as the suspect. Perhaps.

[berdie]

There were 3 "road rage" events in Dallas in the last 10 days or so (one died and all were young). Frankly, I'm having a hard time understanding this behavior. Are people so into themselves that they think everybody should get out of the way when they are on the road? Do they sit around and decide they are going to drive somewhere and grab a gun "just in case someone gets in my way"?

Of course, I don't understand people getting fired, getting divorced or being bullied and going back to shoot everyone either. Are people really this mentally unstable and fragile? Disclaimer: these are rhetorical questions.

Please don't misunderstand, but I can understand terrorists doing damage. They think they are fighting some kind of war. I don't condone or agree, but kind of understand.

But what in the heck is going on with mindless, stupid killing? Maybe the person you just shot didn't even see you driving down the road. How long is it going to slow down your trip?

[Wingnut]

It has been my experience that these thing sometimes/rarely happen without one party knowing what was happening.  But in most cases it takes two to tango and two to escalate the situation.

[TomSea]

I'll update this when new developments warrant it; it kind of breaks into the normal threads that make up this area.

TRAFFIC
VIDEO: Pickup truck recovered in Chester County road rage killing case

WEST CHESTER, Pa. (WPVI) --
Police have recovered a pickup truck that is believed to be the vehicle sought in connection with a teen's road rage killing in Chester County.

Only Action News was there as a convoy of police officers arrived at the West Goshen Township police station around 1 a.m. Sunday with a red Chevy pickup truck.

Pickup possibly linked to road rage killing recovered

It appears to be the vehicle that police say was driven by a man who shot and killed 18-year-old Bianca Roberson in a road rage incident on Route 100 last week.

It was not immediately known where the pickup truck was found. It comes a day after a series of new surveillance images of the truck were released.

Continued: http://6abc.com/traffic/video-pickup-truck-recovered-in-road-rage-killing-case/2164008/

So, once they have found the pickup truck, one would think they may well be homing in on the suspect.

[skeeter]

Tragedies like like make the news media giddy.

[Wingnut]

I can just see Obama calling a Presser and calling for calm and for us not to rush to conclusions in the face of this hate crime perpetrated by an obvious KKK member out to kill all black people.

[Sanguine]

Tragedies like like make the news media giddy.

Well, only exactly like this.  As Berdie points out above, 3 such incidents, including one death, in Dallas in the last couple of weeks.  The media isn't giddy about those.

[mountaineer]

This is a horrible story. The girl was a good kid, an honor student bound for college. Why is either party's skin color relevant?

[skeeter]

Well, only exactly like this.  As Berdie points out above, 3 such incidents, including one death, in Dallas in the last couple of weeks.  The media isn't giddy about those.

They are utterly consumed by their agenda.

BTW after experiencing several unpleasant incidences myself over the years I make it a point to keep eyes forward while in the car. You just do not know who you are dealing with these days.

[Wingnut]

This is a horrible story. The girl was a good kid, an honor student bound for college. Why is either party's skin color relevant?

A post racial president...that wasn't.

[TomSea]

This is a horrible story. The girl was a good kid, an honor student bound for college. Why is either party's skin color relevant?

You're right, it's not relevant; but per some stories in the press, I'm not sure if they see it that way.

I would not be surprised if the suspect turns out to look nothing like the police sketch.

Though I read some articles; and we don't know who the witness is but according to the articles, the witness is considered to be very reliable.

[Suppressed]

I lived not too far from the shooting for more than 15 years, and I've done that merge many thousands of times.  It's an area where I've seen many problem merges and road rages.

There are so many sociology aspects that go beyond the mere black/white reporting, someone could do a masters thesis on the topic.

The area has experienced very rapid growth, and you get a mix of redneck, ghetto, and suburban commuter/soccer mom, and other cultures clashing.  Unfortunately, I have to admit that many to most of the times I've seen an inconsiderate driver there, it was someone of darker skin.  The offenders of this type seemed to care nothing of decency and rules of the road.  The guys in the BMWs and the me-first women were also big problems.  They were a different type of inconsiderate--downright aggressive.

I'm not saying the victim in this case had been inconsiderate, but even if she hadn't, someone unbalanced enough to murder someone over a traffic merge might have held resentments from past encounters.


Yes, I'm throwing out a lot of speculations...and that's my point.  Not that any of them are true, but that the complexities involving that area are tangled, so we can't really assume anything. 

I will be following this with great interest, both for the national reaction as well as the local details.

[Jazzhead]

Let's not forget that the suspect is still at large.   The prominence of the man's race has to do with the fact that they're still trying to catch the guy,  so the witness sketch is the focus of the stories.    Recognize him?   Speak up and let's capture this piece of trash.   

No adjective necessary.   

[TomSea]

http://6abc.com/traffic/suspect-arrested-idd-in-chester-co-road-rage-killing/2164008/

Suspect turned himself in, we will see where it goes from here.  So, I'd say, maybe looks a bit like sketch in a general way.

[TomSea]

http://www.fox4news.com/news/263834376-story

This happened in Arlington, TX. 6:00 PM last Sunday, that, one would think, is one of the least busy times on the road. Sounds like it will be hard to catch the culprit in this incident. Sad.

Pretty nuts firing a gun at someone while driving. What's the world coming to?

[Suppressed]

Suspect turned himself in, we will see where it goes from here.  So, I'd say, maybe looks a bit like sketch in a general way.

He's from the old industrial area, not really near where this happened.

[skeeter]

I lived not too far from the shooting for more than 15 years, and I've done that merge many thousands of times.  It's an area where I've seen many problem merges and road rages.

There are so many sociology aspects that go beyond the mere black/white reporting, someone could do a masters thesis on the topic.

The area has experienced very rapid growth, and you get a mix of redneck, ghetto, and suburban commuter/soccer mom, and other cultures clashing.  Unfortunately, I have to admit that many to most of the times I've seen an inconsiderate driver there, it was someone of darker skin.  The offenders of this type seemed to care nothing of decency and rules of the road.  The guys in the BMWs and the me-first women were also big problems.  They were a different type of inconsiderate--downright aggressive.

I'm not saying the victim in this case had been inconsiderate, but even if she hadn't, someone unbalanced enough to murder someone over a traffic merge might have held resentments from past encounters.


Yes, I'm throwing out a lot of speculations...and that's my point.  Not that any of them are true, but that the complexities involving that area are tangled, so we can't really assume anything. 

I will be following this with great interest, both for the national reaction as well as the local details.

What happens on the road is the raw reflection of general societal trends, IMO. Selfishness, entitlement, resentment, all growth industries, boil over easily when people feel insulated in their metal cocoons.

[Sanguine]

What happens on the road is the raw reflection of general societal trends, IMO. Selfishness, entitlement, resentment, all growth industries, boil over easily when people feel insulated in their metal cocoons.

Skeeter,  I agree with that, and you add in overcrowded and poorly designed roads it becomes almost inevitable.

[TomSea]

I have a friend who is a nice person but when he gets on the highway, the freeway, he gets very animated; though I can't speak for everyone, I know I have my share of moments as well usually in the form of calling someone a name under my breath.  Last summer it was, there was an altercation in a neighborhood and I called it in to the police. Something happened basically at a street corner and I did get the license plate of the troublemaker.