We all get carried away sometimes. It can happen on the road when the car in front of you cuts you off. It can happen at home, where an argument can get out of hand or tempers can flare up. It can also happen on a night out, where somebody says more than they should because they drank too much.
The point is that we’ve all felt annoyed or angry at some point in our lives. We all have to deal with those feelings in one way or another. For some of us, those feelings cause us to throw a punch, drive aggressively or do something else we might come to regret.
Jamill Jones is an assistant basketball coach at Wake Forest University. About 1:00 AM on the morning of Sunday, August 5, 2018, he faced one of the situations that were just mentioned. He now faces assault charges related to the death of Sandor Szabo, a Vice President in a digital marketing firm.
Early Sunday morning, Szabo left his brother’s hotel room, apparently headed for his own hotel. Szabo, who appears to have been drunk at the time, was trying to pick up an Uber or a cab in New York City and started banging on car windows. Eventually, a local resident came to confront Szabo, and Szabo allegedly punched the man.
At this point, Jones allegedly got out of his SUV and punched Szabo. The force of the blow allegedly knocked Szabo down to the ground and left him bleeding from the mouth. Szabo cracked his skull on the sidewalk. Jones and a witness allegedly helped sit Szabo up, and Jones had left the scene by the time law enforcement arrived.
The charges against Jones are likely to be upgraded if the medical examiner finds that the punch led to Szabo’s death.
We can argue all day about Jones’s motivations and what he should have done. The point remains: if he hadn’t thrown that punch, he wouldn’t be facing charges today. Sometimes it’s better to swallow that anger and pride. Sometimes it’s better to think long term and realize that throwing the punch isn’t worth it.
Remember that actions in the heat of the moment can lead to consequences that last a lifetime. Road rage can lead to deadly accidents. One punch can lead to someone’s death, even if it was not intended to do so. Keep a cool head and remember that one moment’s humiliation is better than a lifetime of regret.
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