Road Rage

Abstract

The term road rage, which first appeared in 1988,6 now permeates ordinary conversation.7 It has been popularized by novelists,8 cartoonists,9 and the entertainment industry;10 spawned a plethora of commercial products;11 been the subject, in 1997, of congressional hearings;12 and was an early campaign issue of Al Gore in his race for the White House.13 It also has spread around the globe, turning drivers in other countries into both aggressors and victims.14 Surprisingly, however, road rage has managed to escape the notice of law review writers.15 To fill the gap, Part II of this article profiles the road rage phenomenon. Part III looks at the growing number of court cases involving road rage. Part IV describes Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED), a psychiatric diagnosis which might explain why some motorists cannot suppress the urge to strike out and cause injury. The article concludes by suggesting when IED is present, courts should be receptive to its use as a defense in road rage cases.