A simple trip home turned into a scary situation for one Billings family on Saturday.
Jonathon Martinez, his wife and two children had pulled into their driveway when they were confronted by a 39-year-old woman who pulled a gun on them.
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Martinez says the family did not know the woman and had only noticed her following closely behind them while traveling on the road.
This encounter ultimately ended with the suspect getting into a standoff with police while on her roof.
“Parked about right here in the back of my car,” Martinez said as he pointed to a spot in his driveway. “She pulled up right there. I got out, looked to see who it was and said, put my hands up and she reached over, grabbed a gun and pointed at me. And I was in complete shock.”
Martinez remained composed as the woman sat in the driver's seat and pointed the gun at him through the passenger side window.
“I told her that there's witnesses all over," Martinez said. "And I was like, you're really going to pull a gun out on my family and me in my driveway? And she backed up and drove off,” Martinez said.
His wife was standing close by with their two young children as Martinez tried to reason with the woman.
“Absolutely terrified,” said Brianna Medina, Martinez’s wife. “Especially with the amount of road rage incidents that are turning for the worst nowadays. Extremely terrified. Thankfully my kids were asleep and they didn't have to witness it at all. But I remained off to the side trying to stay within arm's reach of my kids and kind of let him try to mellow the situation a little.”
Martinez called dispatch and with the help of a license plate, Billings police officers located the woman in the 700 block of 22nd Street West.
After several hours, hostage negotiators removed her from the roof, and she was arrested for assault with a weapon, criminal endangerment, and obstructing a peace officer.
"We just had to file an order of protection against her, but I hope the justice system does right," said Medina.
The Martinezes were driving home on their normal route after having dinner at a friend's home.
The woman started honking her horn and tailgating them.
And they look at this incident as an important reminder of staying calm when there is road rage.
“Somebody's riding on you, just let them get out of the way,” Medina said. “Somebody's following you around, call the police and park. Do something, but definitely do not take it into your own hands and do not provoke them. Don't show aggression.”
Even with the terrible situation, the family is hoping for the best for the woman.
“Yeah, yeah, I hope that she gets the help she needs,” Martinez said. “She has a family too. And I hope that that for her family and for herself, she can, can get past this.”
