Delco woman who poses ‘threat to society’ jailed in road-rage shooting

A Chester County judge said Monday that he was showing mercy to a Secane woman when he sentenced her to county jail rather than state prison for a road-rage shooting in Willistown Township last year.

But in sentencing Racquel Graham to nine to 23 months in jail, Judge Patrick Carmody was unequivocal in his warning to her.

“You had a good job, and you pursued the American Dream, which I respect, but you almost turned it into a nightmare for you and [the victim],” Carmody said. He called Graham a “tremendous threat to society” and ordered her to undergo mental health treatment in jail

Graham, 43, was convicted of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, and related crimes in May.

During her trial, Graham said that in the weeks before the shooting, she had been threatened by her neighbors, who she said belong to a violent street gang.

She believed one of those gang members was driving alongside her on Goshen Road in Willistown on May 2, 2024, and told investigating officers that the driver had been harassing her for several days before the shooting.

Graham fired once, striking the vehicle’s passenger window.

In reality, prosecutors said, the car was being driven by a stranger, who testified at Graham’s trial that the gunshot terrified him and caused significant damage to his vehicle.

The victim said Graham had suddenly begun. to slow down as he drove behind her near the intersection of Goshen and Sugartown Roads. As he passed her in the left lane, the man said, he looked to his right and saw her pointing a handgun at him through her car’s open window.

Assistant District Attorney Monica Szyszkiewicz noted Monday that the windows on the man’s car were tinted, so Graham had no idea who was in the vehicle when she fired her gun.

In the two years leading up to the shooting, the prosecutor said, police investigated 11 incidents involving Graham, including multiple disputes with other motorists.

Each time, she said, Graham told investigators her fears about the street gang, saying different members, in different vehicles, were pursuing her.

Graham’s attorney, Ellen Blood Koopman, said it was clear that Graham was suffering from mental health issues and urged Carmody to allow her to serve her sentence on house arrest. It was the best way, she said, to ensure that Graham could receive the treatment she needs.

Koopman noted that Graham had never been arrested before and had built a successful life for herself since she emigrated to the United States from Jamaica as a teenager.

But the judge was not swayed.

He said Graham had yet to take full responsibility for her actions and still believed that she had done nothing wrong.

“I hope you serve your sentence and become a productive member of society,” Carmody told Graham before she was taken into custody. “And I hope you never touch a firearm again, because you’re a danger with one in your hands.”