Man gets 5 years for U.S. 95 road-rage shooting

By Jeff Pope

Tuesday, March 3, 2009 | 11:19 a.m.

Road rage has landed a Las Vegas man in prison for up to five years.

James Pribble, 29, was sentenced today for shooting a woman on U.S. 95, near Lake Mead Boulevard, following an argument with the woman's husband.

Pribble pleaded guilty Jan. 20 to assault with a deadly weapon, battery with substantial bodily harm and removing the serial number from a firearm as part of a plea agreement. He would be eligible for parole after serving two years.

"It sounds like there are two different stories from the victim and the defendant as to who was at fault," said Deputy District Attorney Nell Keenan. "Both were at fault for pulling over but after that the defendant's actions were egregious."

Prosecutors said Pribble shot 29-year-old Melissa Woodward on April 6, 2008, after their two vehicles nearly collided on the Cheyenne Avenue onramp.

Martin Hart, Pribble's attorney, asked District Court Judge Michael Villani to sentence Pribble to probation rather than prison time because, he said, Pribble never intended to shoot anyone.

Pribble has no prior convictions, Hart said. "You'll never see him again," Hart told Villani.

Pribble apologized to the victim, who was not present at the sentencing. "I take full responsibility for my actions," he said.

Woodward and her husband, Thomas, no longer live in state, Keenan said.

At the time of the incident, Melissa Woodward was in the passenger seat of a silver Saturn four-door driven by her husband. Pribble was driving a burgundy Jeep Cherokee.

Thomas Woodward testified at a preliminary hearing that while on the freeway, he and Pribble rolled down their windows and yelled at each other. Both cars pulled over to the shoulder, according to court transcripts of the hearing.

Pribble told Metro Police that Thomas Woodward charged at him, so he grabbed his 9 mm Ruger pistol from his Jeep. Pribble said he fired at the ground to scare Thomas Woodward.

Melissa Woodward was standing next to her car when one bullet struck her in the left abdomen, according to court documents.

Police recovered three shells from Pribble's gun but found just two bullet strikes on the ground, Keenan said.

After realizing his wife had been shot, Thomas Woodward drew his wife's .40-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun and fired at Pribble's car, striking it several times as he drove away, court documents said.

Melissa Woodward was hospitalized and later released. She testified that the bullet remains in her body because it is too close to her spine for doctor's to risk removing it.

Jeff Pope can be reached at 990-2688 or [email protected].