A minor parking lot fender bender at a Pico Rivera shopping plaza spiraled into a frightening confrontation Thursday, with video showing one driver striking a man with his vehicle and nearly running him over. Despite the alarming footage, sheriff's deputies took no report. Both drivers apologized to each other and declined to press charges.
The incident happened just after 5 p.m. Thursday near Whittier and Paramount boulevards in Pico Rivera, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, as reported by ABC7 Los Angeles. Video captured the confrontation, which followed an apparent fender bender in the parking lot, per the station's report. The footage shows two vehicles positioned with their bumpers appearing to touch before the situation escalated.
According to the same account, the driver of the front vehicle broke off one side mirror from the vehicle behind him, then punched and shattered that vehicle's other side mirror. The driver of the second vehicle then accelerated and struck the man, nearly running him over, the outlet reported. The man chased the driver through the parking lot as the vehicle sped away, the report notes.
Deputies Respond But No Report Is Filed
Sheriff's deputies responded to the scene and spoke with both drivers, but neither wanted to press charges, per the same account. As a result, authorities took no report on the incident. The shopping plaza has exposure to a combined 64,000 average daily vehicles between two signalized intersections, according to a LoopNet listing for the property.
The city of Pico Rivera contracts its municipal law enforcement through the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which polices Pico Rivera and books arrests at the Pico Rivera Station on Passons Boulevard, according to Armstrong Bail Bonds.
What California Law Says About Vehicles as Weapons
Even though no charges were filed here, intentionally using a vehicle to strike or run over a person during a traffic dispute can be prosecuted under California Penal Code Section 245(a)(1) as assault with a deadly weapon, a wobbler offense carrying up to four years in state prison regardless of whether severe injury results, according to My Rights Law Criminal Defense and DUI Lawyers. Under California law, a motor vehicle is legally recognized as a deadly weapon when driven in a manner likely to cause severe bodily harm, the firm notes.
Separately, under California Vehicle Code Section 13210, courts have the authority to suspend a driver's license for six months on a first offense and one year on subsequent offenses if the driver is convicted of assault with a deadly weapon involving a motor vehicle, per My Rights Law Criminal Defense and DUI Lawyers.
Deputies spoke with both drivers, neither of whom wanted to press charges, and took no report.
A Nationwide Pattern of Driver Aggression
The Pico Rivera confrontation fits a broader national pattern. A September 2025 study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that 96 percent of U.S. drivers admitted to engaging in aggressive driving behaviors over the previous year, with 11 percent admitting to violent acts such as intentionally bumping another vehicle or confronting another driver in person. Earlier survey research by the Automobile Club of Southern California estimated that roughly 7.6 million American drivers have stepped out of their vehicles to confront another motorist, while about 5.7 million have intentionally rammed or bumped another vehicle.
