A road-raging Georgia man smiled proudly in his mugshot after reportedly knocking over some bicyclists while driving last month.
Jerry Wayne Ross, 72, allegedly committed the act of road rage on April 23 in Cherokee County, according to local station WAGA.
One of the cyclists, Richard Collins, told the station he was leading a North Georgia Cycling Association group when Ross approached from behind, allegedly started honking like a maniac for roughly two minutes, and then moved to pass the cyclists in a no-passing zone.
What made passing the cyclists difficult, it appears, is that they were taking up the whole lane instead of riding in a single file.
Collins tried to stay in the lane as much as possible while passing, causing him to careen awfully close to the cyclists — so much so that he wound up accidentally knocking one off his bike.
Watch (*Graphic content):
Cherokee County 🚗Hit-and-Run Caught on Camera🚴
According to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, a driver in a Honda Pilot approached the group from behind while blaring his horn. Despite there being no oncoming traffic, the driver accelerated dangerously close to the group,… pic.twitter.com/uLhcgIgepM
— American Crime Stories (@AmericanCrime01) April 28, 2026
“According to Collins, the vehicle’s side mirror struck the cyclist behind him, then hit Collins, knocking him off his bike,” WAGA notes.
Collins, the group leader with glasses, was initially treated at the scene for road rash on his shoulder, elbow, and knee. He later discovered from an orthopedist that he’d fractured his lower spine.
Ross was subsequently arrested and hit with six charges, including hit-and-run, aggressive driving, and failing to maintain a safe distance from a bicycle.
“I just hope this experience will raise awareness to the rules of the road, for cyclists, and how drivers should allow for the 3 feet distance in safe passing,” Collins told WAGA.
When questioned, however, Ross blamed the cyclists for the incident, pointing to the fact that they’d been in the middle of the road. A cursory glance at social media shows that many, in fact, agree with him:
In a double yellow?!?! Those douchebag cyclists should be strung up for riding 3 or 4 wide like that. Absolutely would acquit this guy if I was on the jury.
— Beltfed_Actual (@BeltfedsForAll) April 24, 2026
Where I live, bike riders are required by law to ride in single file. They can, and will be ticketed for riding the way they are in this video.
— Your Huckleberry (@DMZ00878115) April 24, 2026
Cyclists were being dickheads and that’s a no passing zone, meaning it’s a dangerous place to pass because you can’t see oncoming traffic
The ones that created a situation like this are the cyclists— Yee Haw (@YeeHawTonk2) April 24, 2026
Cyclists take up the entire road on purpose. They do this everywhere, ridiculous entitled jerks and for no reason. Look at him LEAN on the truck, it looks like he did it on purpose to sue the driver. Not much sympathy from me unfortunately.
— Misophist (@Misophist399254) April 24, 2026
I recognize exactly where that is. These FN cyclist don’t give a shit about anyone else but themselves. They all dress up like they’re in some real event and take up the whole road like it’s all about them. Everyone is sick if this shit! We have big ass bike trails here too.
— Albert Orr (@orr_albert66370) April 24, 2026
Ross is reportedly being held without bond.
A similar but far worse incident occurred days earlier in South Bend, Indiana, where a man with Parkinson’s who’d been cycling from Chicago to Phoenix to raise awareness had his tricycle demolished.
The man, Steve Squires, told station WNDU that a truck was passing him and other cyclists when it hit his tricycle, “absolutely destroying it,” and sending him flying into a nearby field.
“It was serious enough that some of the team thought I was dead,” Squires, who has had Parkinson’s for 25 years, reportedly wrote on Facebook.
Indeed, he suffered deep bruises and four broken ribs.
“We are just grateful that he is alive, because his being thrown from his bike saved his life,” his mother told WNDU.
The team is reportedly continuing to “ride,” and Squires, meanwhile, is hoping to heal up well enough to join them in Phoenix on May 22 for the World Parkinson’s Congress 2026.
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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