SHOCKING footage has revealed how two middle-aged women left traffic at a standstill as they came to blows in an ugly road rage row.
The fracas started when Anne Heritage overtook Sarah Hammond’s Volkswagen Beetle car on a 30mph road in Bournemouth, Dorset.
As the 65-year-old tried to pull back in, Hammond, 45, deliberately sped up to prevent her from doing so.
Heritage was eventually able to manoeuvre her Kia in front of the VW but when both cars stopped at traffic lights Hammond got out to remonstrate.
She shouted abuse at the older driver before kicking the driver’s side door several times using her Ugg-like boots.
Heritage got out and the two women brawled on the floor as gobsmacked drivers watched on.
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Heritage claimed she was the victim and lashed out to defend herself after Hammond punched her in the head and ripped out a clump of her hair.
But video shot by a bystander on his mobile phone shows Hammond being held down in the road by an 80-year-old male passenger in the Kia while Heritage kicks her three times.
Hammond had her 12-year-old son in the car with her at the time.
In the end the police decided to charge both women over the incident and the pair came face to face again when they appeared at Poole Magistrates’ Court.
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Hammond, from Poole, accepted her part in the road rage and agreed to be bound over to keep the peace for 12 months.
Heritage denied a charge of assault but was found guilty following a half-day trial. Her passenger, Roy Franklin, was not charged.
Paul Legg, representing Hammond, told magistrates: “This is a rather unusual case where two people were charged. Both said there’s a victim and an aggressor and the Crown didn’t pick a side and charged both parties.
“Sarah Hammond has always accepted she did kick out on one occasion as Ms Heritage sat in her car.
“But there has never been evidence from anyone other than Anne Heritage that Mrs Hammond punched her.
“She approached the car because she thought the manner of her driving was unacceptable. She had her 12-year-old son in the car and was concerned and wanted to speak to her but has always denied punching her.
“There was a confrontation and Mrs Hammond says then she was assaulted. She kicked out once because she was upset and frustrated. She accepts her actions were in breach of the peace.”
The court heard the incident happened on Castle Lane West in Bournemouth at 1pm on March 25 last year.
Siobhan Oxley, prosecuting, said Hammond had been driving slowly when Heritage overtook her in the silver Kia hire car and then tried to pull back into the lane in front of her.
Hammond is said to have then sped up to prevent her rejoining the lane, but Heritage did get in front of her.
Heritage told the court the driving incident “wasn’t a big deal” and she had no idea why Hammond reacted the way she did.
She said: “I had to get in front of her, which seemed to enrage her. I noticed that she followed me. I stopped at traffic lights and somebody came bounding up to my car and started kicking the door.”
Heritage said that because it was a hire car she could not work out how to lock it and did not want Hammond to trash the car and lose her deposit so she got out to talk to her.
She claimed Hammond then hit her three times to the side of her head with a closed fist.
She added: “I thought I might fall down. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to defend myself and said ‘Roy, help me, help me’. She grabbed my hair and ripped it out, I’ve now got about 25 per cent hair loss.
“I tried to put my hands on her hands to stop her but I wasn’t successful and she was kicking me. Roy came round and pulled her to the ground.
“I tried to kick towards her but I didn’t actually connect with her. I kicked out three or four times but none of my kicks connected to her.”
Eyewitness Jason Dudley had just left a shop when he heard a woman shout “it’s a 30 limit” and walked to the road edge to see what was going on.
He said: “The two women started arguing then got into a physical altercation. I was probably about 20 metres away, it all happened quite quickly, I didn’t see who hit who first.
“When the male got involved and the woman was on the floor I thought it was important to start filming. The gentleman and the woman were kicking her and I felt it was unfair. She was being restrained.”
Heritage called the police shortly afterwards and said: “I have been attacked and all my hair has been pulled out by this bloody woman…She just went mental.”
The magistrates accepted Heritage had tried to defend herself but felt “the force was excessive”.
In finding her guilty Darren Howe, presiding magistrate, told her: “Whoever was in the wrong, without any damage to a vehicle or injury, it’s best to just let it go.”
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“Kicking or attempting to kick the victim while she was held on the ground was not necessary to defend herself.”
Heritage, from Bridgewater, Somerset, was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay a £26 victim surcharge and £500 towards the prosecution trial costs.
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Ethan Singh
