Boxer Involved in Costa Mesa Car Accident Charged

In July this year, we reported on Quentin “Rampage “Jackson, the boxer and former Ultimate Fighting Championship title holder who caused a traffic rampage in Costa Mesa, plowing his car into several other vehicles as he tried to flee the scene of a hit and run accident. Jackson was charged yesterday with several criminal counts stemming from the crashes that he caused as he drove through his widely publicized run from the law.

According to the Daily breeze, the charges include one felony count each of evading while driving recklessly, evading a peace officer and driving against traffic, and three misdemeanor counts of hit and run with property damage and another misdemeanor charge of reckless driving.

The rampage was widely reported in sports media, and provided fodder to the comedy circuits and talk shows for weeks later. The circumstances under which Jackson’s strange behavior erupted were interesting. Just days earlier, he had lost his title as the “Ultimate” world champion. The chase started after Jackson crashed into two cars at the 55 Freeway and 19th Street intersection. He immediately fled from the scene of the car accident. By this time, police were on his tale, and the boxer continued to rampage his way through, sending pedestrians scurrying for cover as he drove his car up onto the sidewalk. He continued to drive on even as one of his tires blew out, driving on a rim. To add to all the drama was a life sized cut out of the boxer that was prominently displayed on the side of this pickup.

Given Jackson’s erratic behavior, it was easy to suspect that he was under the influence of intoxicants, but there seemed to be no evidence of any alcohol or drugs involved in car accident. Soon after, Jackson was booked on charges of reckless driving, hit and run and felony evading. He was later released on a bail of $25,000.

Investigations after the accident focused on a number of misdemeanors that Jackson was found to have caused as he drove from the police. One woman, who had been in one of the vehicles that were sideswiped by the boxer’s pickup, alleged that the accident had caused her to have a miscarriage a few days after the car accident. Investigators have seemed to have found no evidence to link her miscarriage to the impact of the accident.

Another angle that police explored further was the claim by some of Jackson’s friends and associates that he had been displaying strange behavior in the days leading up to the car accident. The stress of the loss of the heavy weight championship after which he was heavily criticized by his manager, his friends felt, had taken a toll on his mental health. Police took him to the hospital for mental evaluation, and details of that evaluation have not been released due to confidentiality reasons.

That this car accident remained not a very serious one is entirely a matter of good fortune of those who were involved in the series of collisions Jackson caused that day. There could very well have been fatalities in an accident of this nature. The sort of reckless behavior that Jackson displayed could have ended with worse results that we have seen here. To ensure that the man is not tempted to manifest more signs of machismo on the streets again, he should be held totally accountable this time.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of car accidents. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.