Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, October 31, 1994 TAG: 9410310081
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: FAIRFAX LENGTH: Short
Over the past year, state police have received 58 reports of highway shootings from around the state, including 12 in Northern Virginia. That figure doesn't include dozens of reports received by local police regarding shootings on city streets and rural roads.
No fatalities have been reported, and injuries have been few.
State and Fairfax County police on Tuesday will launch a 45-day initiative to increase police presence on Interstates 95, 395 and 66.
In the most serious highway shooting, a Fredericksburg man was shot in the neck March 12 after a high-speed traffic altercation on I-95 near Quantico.
At least five shots were fired into the car in which the man was riding. He has recovered from his wound. No one has been arrested.
In the most recent incident, a Herndon woman said her car was fired upon late Tuesday night as she traveled eastbound on I-66 near Manassas. The shot missed.
Police have begun compiling information to try to establish a pattern in the shootings, said Maj. John B. Scott, assistant director of field operations for the state police.
Most of the shootings begin with some sort of traffic altercation, Scott said, such as someone not going fast enough.
Police said it is extremely difficult to make arrests in the shootings. The victims often are too rattled to collect identifying information. Police urge victims to write down tag numbers if it is safe to do so.
by CNB