Illinois State police are investigating a shots fired incident connected to possible road rage on the northbound lanes of the Route 53 Spur that involved a bullet striking a white pickup truck on Wednesday evening, January 17, 2024. The bullet was allegedly discharged by a shooter in a gray Honda. No injuries were reported, and no shots were reported fired in the Lake Terramerre neighborhood, although one or both vehicles may have entered the Lake Terramere neighborhood after the shot was fired on the Route 53 Spur. Illinois State Police received the report from the victim just after 5:35 p.m. Wednesday.
Illinois State Police police next responded to a street in the Lake Terramere neighborhood in Arlington Heights to meet with the victim.
Apparently the victim last saw the offender after both drivers of the shooter’s vehicle and the victim’s vehicle exited Route 53 at eastbound Lake Cook Road. The shot was fired around 5:35 p.m. at a white Silverado pickup truck on northbound Route 53 near Lake Cook Road near Arlington Heights and unincorporated Arlington Heights. One bullet hole was discovered in the white Silverado pickup truck.
Including other details of this Unlawful Use of Weapon case, Illinois State Police troopers were investigating whether the victim followed the shooter into the Lake Terramere neighborhood, or whether the victim fled into the Lake Terramere neighborhood with the shooter following. Lake Terramere is the furthermost north neighborhood in Arlington Heights that borders Lake County and Long Grove at Lake Cook Road. The Illinois State Police did not provide further details.
No injuries were reported, and Arlington Heights Fire Department paramedics were not requested for any patient assessments related to the incident.
Illinois State Police shut down the northbound lanes of Route 53 Spur between Dundee Road and Lake Cook Road around 8:20 p.m. for a casings canvas of the roadway. The Route 53 Spur was re-opened by 09:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 17, 2024.
The Illinois State Police did not indicate whether they had a person of interest identified, and did not initially release any physical description of the shooter, or indicate whether the shooter was also the driver.
Also, around 5:20 p.m. Wednesday, there was a report of a personal injury crash in the northbound Lanes of the Route 53 Spur south of Lake Cook Road. No crash victims were transported by paramedics, and there was no information released by police that the crash and shot fired call were connected in any way.
The information in this article is an early report published before complete summary information was confirmed or released by police authorities.
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The Illinois State Police (ISP) launched an educational, public awareness campaign focused on reducing incidents involving road rage on January 4, 2023. The new campaign, Road Rage. Don’t Engage. is designed to raise awareness about an increase in road rage incidents leading to violence, as well as educate the public on the signs of road rage and tips on how to prevent and handle these situations.
Road rage is anger and frustration caused by the stress of driving in a motor vehicle. Some of the most common signs of road rage and aggressive driving are:
Following too closely or tailgating
Improper or erratic lane changing
Illegally driving on the shoulder of the road (emergency lane), in a ditch/median, or on sidewalk
Passing where prohibited
Failure to yield right of way
Failure to obey traffic laws, signs, and devices
Failure to yield to emergency personnel and construction zone speed limits
Failure to signal
Driving too fast for conditions or in excess of posted speed limit or racing
Making an improper turn
ISP reminds the public that when it comes to aggressive drivers and road rage, don’t engage.
The Illinois State Police recommended the following tips on how to avoid being the victim of road rage:
(Of course, depending on circumstances, some of the tips aren’t practical to utilize.)
If you are in the left lane and someone wants to pass, move to your right and allow them to pass
When merging, make sure you have plenty of room and use your turn signal
If someone cuts you off, slow down and give them room to merge into your lane
If a speeding driver is tailgating you, safely change lanes when able
Making gestures might anger the other driver; create distance and avoid confrontation
If another driver is acting angry, don’t make eye contact
The last two recommendations are 100 percent applicable. Making gestures or making eye contact, or even communicating verbally with another driver are likely to escalate the situation, and these actions are also likely to distract from actual driving. For example, while you’re focused on engaging with one driver, you could rear-end another third-party vehicle or drift into another lane and hit another vehicle. Also, escalation has its own risks because there is a significant risk that a motorist might react by displaying a weapon or firing a shot.
If you are the victim of road rage or believe a driver is following or harassing you, the Illinois State Police recommend calling 911 and/or going to the nearest police department to report it.
❝Don’t lose your temper or your life. Road Rage. Don’t Engage.❞
— Illinois State Police
More information about road rage and Road Rage. Don’t Engage.