A Michigan concealed carry holder will not face charges after shooting a mother and daughter in a road rage incident late last month, with prosecutors determining the armed citizen was acting in self-defense when she fired her gun. 

The shooting took place in Sterling Heights, Michigan back on February 27th, when the mother and daughter followed the driver of a Dodge Durango into a shopping center parking lot. As the driver of the Durango stopped at a stop sign, the mother and daughter hopped out of the Jeep Compass and approached the armed citizen's vehicle.

Officials say the mother and daughter started physically assaulting the driver, causing a bystander to approach the Durango to give aid.

Police say the woman in the Durango who was in fear for her life pulled out her gun and shot one time, hitting the mother and daughter, causing the bystander to flee after she heard the gun go off.

Officials say an eyewitness called 911, saying, “Those two girls tried to attack the shooter. Those two girls were beating up on her.”

The shooter, according to police, has a valid concealed pistol license.

According to an earlier report, the older woman suffered non-life threatening injuries. Her daughter was originally listed in critical condition, but is now reported to be recovering from her wound. 

Despite the eyewitness accounts that the driver of the Dodge Durango shot the women after she was attacked, it sounds like local police were ready to pursue criminal charges but were turned down by prosecutors. 

The Sterling Heights Police Department submitted a warrant request on Tuesday, March 12, to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Warrant Unit for possible charges against the driver of the Durango, but it was denied, citing self-defense.

An investigation about potential charges against the mother and daughter by the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office, but after further investigation, witness interviews, and discussion with the shooter, it was determined that no charges would be filed against the women.

“Denying charges on the ground of self-defense is a recognition of the inherent right to protect oneself when faced with imminent danger,” said Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido.

That's definitely the right call when it comes to the driver of the Durango, but I'm surprised that prosecutors declined to charge either of the woman's attackers. My guess is that the armed citizen didn't want to pursue a criminal case against her attackers, and without her testimony or cooperation it would be difficult for prosecutors to get a conviction, but Lucido didn't give a specific reason why he chose not to charge the women with assault or other crimes.

While the two women won't spend any time behind bars for attacking the armed citizen, the injuries they received after trying to pummel the driver will hopefully serve as a reminder to them and others that no matter how annoyed, aggravated, or ticked off another driver might make you, the best thing to do is to put some distance between them and yourself and carry on with your day. You could very well end up facing criminal charges (even if that isn't the case for these two ladies), but you could also end up in a needless confrontation with someone who has both the ability and the right to protect themselves with deadly force.