A pregnant Pottstown woman was arrested Wednesday after a road rage incident that ended in Cumru Township where she fired a gun at another driver.
Erika Rivera, 29, of the first block of South Keim Street was arraigned before District Judge Alvin B. Robinson in Reading District Court on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon; aggravated assault in an attempt to cause serious bodily injury; recklessly endangering another person; simple assault; possessing an instrument of crime; disorderly conduct; careless driving; reckless driving; and driving with a suspended license.
She was placed in Berks County Prison in lieu of $40,000 bail.
According to Cumru Township police:
Rivera fired at least one shot from a handgun at another driver while negotiating the sharp right-hand curve of the exit ramp from Route 422 to Interstate 176.
The shooting followed an ongoing road rage incident that began in Douglass Township and saw Rivera and the other motorist driving aggressively, brake-checking each other and cutting each other off.
Police were alerted to the incident when Rivera approached a patrol car parked in a gravel lot along Route 724 on Wednesday morning.
Rivera told the officer that a woman driving a Honda Civic threw something at her vehicle as both were driving on Route 422.
As Rivera spoke to the officer, the Civic pulled into the lot. The woman driving it got out of the car and shouted to the officer that Rivera had just fired a gun at her.
The officer interviewed both women and Rivera, who told the officer she was pregnant, admitted firing a handgun at the other driver. The attempted shooting was the result of an ongoing road rage incident between the two.
The two drivers began break-checking each other, cutting in front of each other and otherwise driving aggressively while westbound on Route 422 in Douglass Township. It is unclear what ignited the incident.
Just before the off-ramp from Route 422 westbound to I-176 in Cumru, the other driver used the right lane to pass Rivera.
Rivera said she believed the other driver threw something at her SUV as she passed, which led her to cut over two lanes of travel and follow the other vehicle onto the ramp for I-176.
As the two vehicles were on the ramp, Rivera pulled a handgun out her her purse and fired a shot toward the other vehicle.
Rivera continued to follow the other driver from I-176 onto Route 724. While both vehicles were stopped at a stop sign, Rivera got out of her SUV and approached the other vehicle.
The other driver, saying she feared for her safety, drove off on Route 724.
Police found the handgun and recovered a casing believed to from the fired bullet. Police said the gun was loaded with hollow point self-defense rounds.
Rivera also told police that she was aware she was driving with a suspended license. She has been convicted for that same offense nine times.
Source: Berkshire mont
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