Victim describes road rage incident where gun was pointed at him

A Portage, Indiana man was driving east on I-80 when a pick-up truck in the lane next to him tried to change lanes. The driver honked his horn, to warn the truck he was about to hit his car. The victim told police he wasn't able to change lanes because of heavy traffic. He said the pick-up caught up with him again and while they were driving side by side the man in the truck extended his middle finger. The victim returned the gesture and sped away.
He then saw the pick-up "zipping in and out of traffic" in order to catch up with him. When the truck pulled back along side him, the victim said he saw the man in the truck moving his lips and making angry faces while pointing a gun directly at him. The truck pulled away and the victim called the police and was ale to give a description of the truck to police.
Police located the car and asked the driver, 50-year-old John Hochstedler of Niles, Michigan, if he had a gun in the car. He said he did and directed police to a semi-automatic handgun in the center rear passenger compartment of the truck. According to police the gun was loaded, but there was no round in the chamber.
Hochstedler was arrested and charged with Intimidation with a Deadly Weapon, a Class C Felony. Hochstedler denied pointing the gun at the other driver.

Man loses eye in road rage shooting

Josh Deraitus of Auburn, Washington was on his way to pick up his 4-year-old son. He pulled out of a Walgreen's parking lot into traffic when a black car came up quickly behind him and started tailgating him. Josh recalls that he thought, "I'm not going to go 50 or 60 just because this guy is doing 60, so I just maintained 40."
The black car tried to pass Josh, on both the right-hand and left-hand sides, but both times traffic prevented the car from passing. When Josh stopped at a red light, the black car pulled up next to him.
"I looked because I wanted to see the guy who was tailgating me," said Josh. "As I looked, he pulled up slow. The first glimpse I got of him, he already had the gun out. He didn't say anything or try to scare me with the pistol or flash the gun. He just fired one shot and basically hit me right between the eyes." Josh ultimately lost his left eye. Since the shooting he has undergone several surgeries to repair his eye socket and fit him with a prosthetic eye.
32-year-old Justin McCleod has pled not guilty to first-degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm. McLeod was already in custody on other charges and is being held on $500,000 bail.
"I don't have any anger," said Josh. "My faith has filed the void that possibly could have been consumed with anger."