A Kamloops man who lost his cool in a road rage incident earlier this year and punched another driver in the nose has been ordered to undergo counselling for anger management.
Lawrence James Perkes, 67, pleaded guilty Thursday in Kamloops provincial court to one count of assault.
Court heard Perkes became upset after another vehicle cut him off without signalling. As a result, he tailgated the car for 15 minutes and followed it into the parking lot of the McDonald’s restaurant in Valleyview.
“Mr. Perkes exited the vehicle and approached [the other vehicle's] driver-side window seeking to have him get out and get in to some sort of altercation,” Crown prosecutor Oliver Potestio said in court.
“When that didn’t work, Mr. Perkes reached into the window and punched [the other man] in the nose.”
Potestio said the entire altercation was captured on the restaurant’s video surveillance system. Police identified Perkes via his licence plate and arrested him the following day at his home.
Defence lawyer Courtney McLaughlin said Perkes overreacted after being cut off.
“Of course not a justification in any way, shape or form, but that is what prompted the anger here,” she said.
“He felt that the the car pulled in front of him, the person was trying to cause an accident.”
Potestio and McLaughlin suggested a joint submission for 12 months of probation with conditions prohibiting Perkes from possessing weapons and requiring he undergo anger-management counselling.
Kamloops provincial court Judge Marianne Armstrong went along with the joint submission.
