Mother and son shot after traffic dispute

LYNN -- After the second reported violent attack following a traffic argument in two days, a Malden driver was charged with assault with intent to murder after he allegedly chased down and shot a mother and her 17-year-old son in their car yesterday, Lynn police said.

A Lynn law-enforcement official who had knowledge of the inquiry said the motorists in the two cars had been feuding for several blocks. They had stopped at lights and and verbally sparred for about a half-mile, the official said.

At a stop sign on Nahant Street, the teenager allegedly spat at the other car, after which the driver allegedly got out of his car, threatened, and ultimately shot the two victims, the official said.

Gregory Umphrey, 17, and his mother, 52-year-old Linda A. Umphrey of Lynn, were both in fair condition in Massachusetts General Hospital last night. Police would not detail their injuries.

Lynn police charged William F. Green, 55, of Malden with two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a firearm; two counts of armed assault with intent to murder; and with firing a gun within 100 feet of a residence. He is scheduled to be arraigned today in Lynn District Court.

The episode sparked fears about uncontrollable anger on local roadways. After a heated traffic dispute Tuesday in Brockton, a 60-year-old man allegedly hunted down and fatally shot a 27-year-old driver, who had been holding his infant daughter in his arms.

''It's bad enough that you hear about one, but two in a matter of two days is extremely discouraging," said Amie O'Hearn, spokeswoman for the Registry of Motor Vehicles, which is among the agencies trying to curb aggressive driving and road rage. ''It leaves you speechless. This is certainly a wake-up call that people aren't getting the message."

The dispute yesterday reportedly started around 11 a.m., when both cars were traveling on the Lynnway. Linda Umphrey had just picked up her son from summer school, according to a woman at the Umphreys' house who declined to give her name.

The Umphreys then drove off the Lynnway and onto Nahant Street, a small secondary road. Green followed in his 2005 Subaru Forester, said Lieutenant David Brown of the Lynn Police Department.

The police official confirmed that investigators are looking into whether the shooting had been provoked by Gregory Umphrey spitting on the Forester, based on accounts from witnesses.

''The kid said he accidentally spit on the guy's car," said Mauricio Hermosilla, 31, who helped the Umphreys outside his house on Nahant Street yesterday. ''That's why the guy shot him, according to the kid."

A witness on Nahant Street said he saw the Forester pull up on the right side of the Umphreys' Nissan Altima.

''The guy pulled up next to him and said, 'You do that again, I'll [expletive] kill you,' " said the witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared retribution.

The witness said he did not believe the driver was serious, but shortly afterward, ''I heard the pop, pop."

Police said Green got out of his car and fired his gun into the Umphreys' car. Police said they were seeking a warrant to search his car for the weapon. They said Green was licensed to carry a gun.

Officer Christopher Hegarty of the Lynn police found both Umphreys suffering from gunshot wounds outside their car on Nahant Street.

Several witnesses said that Gregory Umphrey had been shot in the back and that his mother, Linda, had been shot in the neck or chest. ''She had a marble-sized hole in her neck or chest area," Hermosilla said. ''She was covered with blood, and she was yelling."

Both mother and son were panicked and appeared to be in shock, witnesses said.

''I heard the shots and came out on the balcony," said Nadia Saburov, 19, who lives in an apartment overlooking the street. ''The kid was shot in the back. He was hysterical, literally running around in circles."

Still, Gregory Umphrey provided police the license plate of the car that had followed them. Police contacted the Registry for information on the driver, and broadcast details to other departments.

Thirty-six minutes after the shooting was reported, Officer Brian Richard of the Peabody Police Department arrested Green on Route 1 south in Peabody.

The Umphreys were transported to Massachusetts General Hospital, where Gregory Umphrey, Linda Umphrey's husband and Gregory's father, was due to be released after having been hospitalized for several days after a motorcycle accident, said a woman at the Umphreys' house.

Neighbors of the Umphreys seemed shaken. Rich Bucko, who said he has known the family for 14 years, described Gregory Umphrey as a polite, good-natured teenager who often took care of his nephew and niece.

Lynn police said Green was licensed to own a firearm. He is a widower, whose wife, Pamela L. Green, died of a brain tumor in January 1999.

A neighbor who would not give his name said Green was a former Marine on disability. The neighbor voiced surprise at the charge

''I just don't see him doing something like that," he said.

John Ellement and Steven Rosenberg of the Globe staff and Globe correspondent Tom Farmer contributed to this report.