An elderly Michigan man was left comatose in a hospital after a road rage attack allegedly committed by a DoorDash driver who was convicted years ago for another road rage incident.
Lloyd Poole, a 75-year-old veteran, was hospitalized after authorities say he was severely injured in a violent encounter with 40-year-old Ryan Turner on Dec. 28 in Wixom, Michigan, a suburban city right outside Detroit.
Family members say Poole saw Turner driving too fast in his neighborhood and tried to confront the driver. When Turner pulled over, both men yelled at each other, and the altercation quickly escalated into violence.
Turner told police that he felt threatened during the encounter and admitted to punching Poole, then leaving him unconscious in the street after the 75-year-old fell backward and hit his head on the road.
The entire incident was also caught on home surveillance video.
Poole has spent the last several days in the hospital. He suffered a black eye and had part of his skull removed in an emergency surgery due to a brain bleed. His daughter, Jen Shaw, told WJBK that he has never fully regained consciousness since the attack.
“He sucker-punched my dad, and my dad never got up, and he drove away,” Shaw said. “Could be like this for a day, could be like this for a week, or a year.”
The family is now rotating shifts at the hospital to look after Poole, with hopes that he wakes up soon.
“He’s not responding. He can’t talk. He’s not awake,” Shaw added. “We don’t know when he’s going to get out of this hospital bed. That may never happen.”
Turner was charged with misdemeanor aggravated assault, an offense punishable by up to one year in jail or a $1,000 fine.
Court records reveal Turner was convicted in connection with another road rage incident in 2022, in which he was charged with assault and battery. He was also caught driving with a suspended or invalid license.
DoorDash confirmed that Turner was permanently removed from the platform, but has not said whether his prior convictions violated company protocols.
“What occurred was absolutely appalling and unacceptable. DoorDash has zero tolerance for violence and we have permanently removed the individual’s access to the platform. We are working with local law enforcement to support their investigation to ensure justice is served,” a company spokesperson told WDIV.
Turner is out of jail on a $3,500 bond.
Poole’s family says they want Turner’s bond conditions changed to keep him away from the victim’s home, where his wife lives. The address is just a five-minute walk from Turner’s home.
“It’s scary that he’s out walking around,” Poole’s stepdaughter, Lindsey Gonzalez, said. “I want everybody in the public to know his face and stay away from him.”
