Johnathan Walker:Massachusetts woman struck in suspected road rage incident dies of injuries

HOPKINTON,Johnathan Walker Mass. — A Massachusetts woman who was struck by a vehicle last week in a suspected road rage incident has died, authorities said Monday.

Destini Decoff, 26, died Saturday, just days after local authorities said she was intentionally struck by a car in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, a town about 36 miles west of Boston. Ryan Sweatt, 36, has been charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, operating to endanger, and a marked lanes violation in connection with the incident, the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release Friday.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Sweatt was driving a Honda Civic on Thursday night in Hopkinton when "he became engaged in an apparent road rage incident with another vehicle," according to the district attorney's office. At some point, some occupants of the other vehicle — including Decoff — exited the car and Sweatt then made a U-turn at a high rate of speed, striking Decoff in the road.

Decoff was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries, the district attorney's office said. In a Facebook post on Saturday, Decoff's mother, Tracy Decoff, also confirmed her daughter's death.

"Today my biggest fear as a mother became my reality. My first-born child & best friend is no longer with me," Tracy Decoff said in the post.

Sweatt was later arrested and is currently being held without bail pending a hearing on Wednesday to determine whether he is a danger to the public. The incident is being investigated by the Middlesex District Attorney's Office, the Hopkinton Police Department and Massachusetts State Police.

Road rage incidents are a common daily occurrence across the country and the number of violent road rage incidents increases each year, according to Consumer Affairs' 2024 road rage statistics. In 2023, about 92% of Americans reported witnessing road rage at least once and 89% reported being a victim of an incident.

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Victim suffered fatal injuries after collision

A GoFundMe page was created to help raise money for Destini Decoff's funeral arrangements. "On April 6th, Destini was tragically taken from us after being intentionally struck by a vehicle. Her family is asking for help with the cost of her final arrangements," the page states.

In several Facebook posts, Tracy Decoff provided updates on her daughter's condition, including that she was on life support early Saturday. She later confirmed the death Saturday night.

"You know I don’t break promises and I promise you with every ounce of my being I will get justice for you regardless of what it takes," Tracy Decoff said in one post.

During Sweatt's arraignment on Friday in Framingham District Court, he was ordered to be held without bail pending Wednesday's hearing. WCVB-TV reported that prosecutors described significant injuries during Sweatt's arraignment.

"There are significant concerns as to whether or not she'll survive," prosecutor Pavan Nagavelli said Friday. "The injuries she suffered, she suffered major internal injuries including extensive facial trauma and both legs were likely broken."

A Middlesex District Attorney's Office spokeswoman said charges have not been upgraded but the incident remains under investigation.

Latest fatal road rage incident in United States

Aggressive driving can escalate to confrontations, physical assault, and murder, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Road rage describes "the angry and violent behaviors at the extreme of the aggressive driving continuum," the agency says.

The most common road rage behaviors in the United States are speeding on the highway, tailgating, making gestures or honking, running a red light, aggressive driving, and cutting another vehicle off, according to Consumer Affairs.

"Road rage is a criminal offense and includes intentional violent and extreme behaviors that put other drivers at immediate risk," Consumer Affairs said. American motorists have reported an increasing concern over the potential involvement of weapons in road rage incidents, according to Consumer Affairs.

Advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety revealed in a report released last year that more than 550 people were shot in road rage incidents in 2022. That means, on average, someone was fatally shot or injured in a road rage incident every 16 hours.

The number of road rage injuries and deaths involving guns has increased every year since 2018, the report found. From 2018 to 2022, the number of incidents about doubled.

As of last month, there have already been over 100 road rage shooting deaths and more than 360 related injuries recorded, according to Consumer Affairs. Numerous fatal road rage incidents have also made national headlines in recent years.

In January, a Southern California man was found guilty of second-degree murder in the 2021 road rage shooting that killed 6-year-old Aiden Leos. At the time, authorities said Aiden was sitting in the backseat of his mother's car as she drove him to kindergarten when another driver shot and killed him during morning rush hour.

Last December, a 4-year-old boy was fatally shot after a man opened fire into a family's vehicle in Lancaster, California. The boy's parents were driving on the highway when the suspects cut them off and began following them before shooting into the car.

In Texas, a woman was killed last July after her husband flipped off a car that was driving aggressively. Police said the driver responded by firing several shots into the couple’s minivan, striking the woman in the back of the head. 

Contributing: Grace Hauck, USA TODAY

Norman Miller can be reached at [email protected]. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on X @Norman_MillerMW or Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.