Left inset: Aaron Williams. Right inset: Footage obtained from a dash cam that allegedly shows Aaron Williams before his road rage attack (Winooski Police/WCAX/YouTube). Background: The area near Malletts Bay Avenue in Winooski, Vt., where cops say Aaron Williams nearly gouged a man’s eyes out during a road rage incident (WCAX/YouTube).
A Vermont man driving home from work nearly had his eyes gouged out by an angry driver during a “road rage” incident, cops report. The victim’s dad says he almost lost his eyesight during the brutal attack, which allegedly started over the suspect not being allowed to pass.
Police officials told Law&Crime on Sunday that Aaron Williams, 44, of Colchester, allegedly “cut the victim off, got out of his car and started a physical altercation” with the man after being prevented from passing him on Malletts Bay Avenue in Winooski.
Williams is charged with felony counts of aggravated assault and maiming, the latter of which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted.
“It was a road rage-related incident,” the Winooski Police Department told Law&Crime.
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The victim — a man in his mid-40s who has not been publicly identified — was driving along Malletts Bay Avenue around 8:30 p.m. when Williams began “tailgating him” then attempted to pass, according to cops. When the victim tried to block the maneuver, Williams surged ahead and abruptly slammed on the brakes, forcing both vehicles to stop.
The victim had a dash camera and was allegedly captured exiting his vehicle and yelling at Williams, who was caught on video walking toward him. Williams allegedly “struck” the victim and “injured” his eyes, per police, with officials saying he drove his thumbs into the man’s eye sockets. The man allegedly told investigators he heard a pop and felt extreme pain afterward, with Williams’ following up with more punches, according to cops.
Court documents obtained by local CBS affiliate WCAX show screen grabs from the victim’s dash cam of Williams that night. Police told Law&Crime that the alleged eye gouging went down off camera, but it was witnessed by at least two people, who have spoken to investigators, per officials.
The victim was taken to the University of Vermont Medical Center and underwent emergency surgery for his eye injuries. Doctors told WCAX that he is expected to regain his vision in one of his eyes, but not both.
“He couldn’t talk much; blood was just pouring from his nose,” Cathryn Blanchard, a local resident who witnessed the aftermath and called police, told local NBC affiliate WPTZ.
The victim’s father, Ronnie Bushaway Sr., says the man’s wife has “been with him the whole time” and he is expected to go through a “long” recovery process. He told WPTZ that his son works as a tractor-trailer driver and needs to pass his CDL license to work, which is in jeopardy now, according to the dad.
“He was active in his community,” Bushaway said. “All the neighbors love him.”
Williams appeared in court last Thursday and pleaded not guilty to his charges.
“This is an egregious offense that was committed on someone that was a stranger to him,” said deputy state’s attorney Susan Hardin during the proceeding, according to Seven Days, a local independent weekly. The judge overseeing the case noted the “extraordinary nature” of the attack and potential life sentence, Seven Days reports.
A bail hearing is expected to be scheduled in the next few weeks.
