A driver involved in a road-rage incident got back in his car, executed two U-turns, and accelerated into a young woman on a Massachusetts highway, leaving her fatally injured, prosecutors have alleged. Destini Decoff, 26, died in the hospital on Sunday, less than 72 hours after being struck at high speed by Ryan Sweatt's Honda Civic on Route 85 north of Milford.
Sweatt, 36, told the police that he had been threatened with a knife by the four men in Destini's car during the incident at 6 p.m. on Thursday. Destini was transported to the hospital with a brain bleed, collapsed lungs, and fractures to her shoulder, tibia, and ribs.
Killed in Road Rage
Destini's grieving mother said she hopes Sweatt "burns in hell" after surveillance footage showed him turning around and deliberately steering into the group of friends, instead of simply driving away.
"He turned around multiple times and he coulda just kept going," witness Brett Martin said.
"He could have kept going. He chose to turn around, chose to come back. He knew what he was doing when he went toward that girl.
"I didn't see her go up in the air. But I saw her come down, hit the pavement. It wasn't good from there."
"I saw her mid-air kind of coming down towards the street, her jacket must've been 20 feet away from her. However she got hit, those clothes flew off."
Sweatt told police that he had left work and was driving home to Milford when the other car pulled in front of him and its driver abruptly slammed on the brakes. A police officer caught up with Sweatt and noticed damage to his windshield after seeing him speed away.
He told the officer, "They're trying to kill me," gesturing back to the people surrounding Destini, who lay in a pool of blood.
Destini was hospitalized with severe injuries, including a brain bleed, collapsed lungs, and fractures to her shoulder, tibia, and ribs. She underwent emergency surgery to remove her spleen and part of her skull to relieve pressure on her swollen brain.
However, despite medical efforts, she never regained consciousness.
Family Devastated
Destini's mother, Tracy, made the difficult decision to turn off her daughter's life support system on Sunday evening. She vowed to seek justice for her daughter, pledging to pursue legal action in her memory.
"With every ounce of my being I hope that mf burns directly in hell!" she wrote on Facebook.
"Today my biggest fear as a mother became my reality. My first born child and best friend is no longer with me.
"I don't break promises and I promise you with every ounce of my being I will get justice for you regardless of what it takes.
"Go spread those beautiful wings and fly without pain and suffering."
Police recovered a knife from the scene, but Sweatt was arrested and charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, operating to endanger, and a marked lanes violation.
According to police, their investigation indicates that Sweatt "became engaged in an apparent road rage incident with another vehicle." "Some of the occupants of the other vehicle" exited their car before Sweatt "made a U-turn at a high rate of speed and struck the victim in the roadway."
Sweatt denied the charges during his court appearance on Friday and was detained pending a dangerousness hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
