‘What Gives You the Right’: Georgia Man Damages Woman’s Car with Pocketknife After He Wrongfully Assumed She Illegally Parked In Handicap Spot, Video Shows
A Georgia man was arrested after being accused of keying a woman’s car with a pocket knife because she was parked in a handicap space.
James Michael Fay, 61, thought Syreeta Mack illegally parked in the spot at a Walmart in Buford, Georgia, last weekend and allegedly used the weapon to scratch her car, WSBTV reported. Both her children were in the vehicle at the time, and one started filming him.
Mack, who recently underwent back surgery, had her handicap sign up as she visited the store on Sept. 23, but it was not wholly hanging on the dashboard, the outlet reported. Footage posted on Mack’s Facebook page shows the suspect near the vehicle and one of her daughters could be heard saying that he “marked” it.
“I don’t know who that is, but he just pulled out a knife and walked around the car,” the child said. “He was looking in the windows.”
In another video, Mack approached Fay inside the store.
“You wanted to park in a handicap spot with no tags,” he said.
“Yes, I do have a tag,” Mack responded.
The two had a back-and-forth about the situation when Mack told him he was caught on video. She also said that she reported him to the police, but he doubled down that she didn’t have the tags.
“Let’s walk out there together so you can see so I can embarrass you,” she said. “I don’t know what gives you the right to damage my vehicle.”
Mack continued to trail Fay in the store while he checked out at the cash register before the video cut off. She recorded another video when Gwinnett County officers arrived and questioned Fay.
“I was just trying to make sure that people were following the rules,” Fay said, speaking to the police in the parking lot.
“So, scratching the car is following the rules,” the officer said sharply.
Mack explained to one of the officers that her daughter frantically called her while she was shopping. Her daughter quickly sent her the video, which is how she identified him inside the store.
Fay was charged with criminal trespass damage, a misdemeanor, according to WSB.
“People need to mind the business that pays them,” Mack told the outlet. “If you feel like someone is doing something illegal, call the police. You don’t have to step in and be a vigilante, because you can end up being a perp instead.”