MESA, Ariz. — A "road rage" driver has been sentenced to 25 years in prison after he followed a couple to their residence in Mesa, punched the woman in the face and murdered her boyfriend.
Frank Lawrence, 35, was sentenced last month in Maricopa County Superior Court after he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and aggravated assault for a violent incident that unfolded on Jan. 11, 2020.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Incidente de furia al volante puso a un sujeto en la cárcel luego de matar a un hombre en Mesa
Officials say a couple driving home in Mesa honked at Lawrence's vehicle after the defendant reportedly veered into their lane of traffic. Lawrence then followed the couple to an apartment complex, where he drove donuts in the parking lot.
Lawrence approached the couple's car and punched the woman. Her boyfriend, 22-year-old James Ackerman Jr., got out of the car and attempted to record Lawrence's license plate number before the driver left.
Lawrence then chased Ackerman down in his truck and fatally hit the young man.
“This defendant’s out-of-control behavior cost the life of an innocent victim,” County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in a statement. “Road rage is a criminal offense that happens all too often in our state.”
The Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety reported more than 600 road rage incidents throughout the state in 2022.
UP TO SPEED
What is the Valley?:
“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest.
The Valley is made up of various major cities other than Phoenix, including:
- Mesa
- Chandler
- Scottsdale
- Tempe
- Glendale
- Surprise
- Peoria
- Gilbert
- El Mirage
- Avondale
- Litchfield Park
- Goodyear
- Buckeye
Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on where it is in relation to Phoenix.
The cities of the Valley have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country right behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.
How big is Maricopa County?
Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.
The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).
One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that includes hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.
The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.
The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.