Tesla road-rage driver's victims say his recent arrest in Hawaii is sign of 'broken system'
HONOLULU (KABC) -- He's been called the "Tesla terrorist," and now, he's facing new legal troubles.
Nathaniel Radimak, who's been convicted in multiple road rage incidents in Southern California, was arraigned Thursday on two counts of misdemeanor assault for allegedly striking an 18-year-old and her mother in Honolulu.
He was also arraigned on a first-degree unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle charge, and his bail was set at $100,000.
On Friday, attorney Gloria Allred, who's representing three of Radimak's alleged victims, spoke out on the charges. The victims also made their voices heard. They say they're outraged seeing him out of prison and doing his same antics somewhere else.
"There was every reason to doubt any chance of reform for this repeat offender," said victim, Beth Lamprecht.
"Unfortunately, it appears that Mr. Radimak did not take advantage of, what should've been for him, a teaching moment," Allred said. "Instead, he relocated to Hawaii."
Radimak allegedly committed the crimes while he was on supervised parole for road rage incidents in Southern California.
"Despite the severity of his crimes, Mr. Radimak was released on parole after serving less than a year of a five-year sentence," victim, Vivian Romero said. "Had he served a sentence of five years in California, these new attacks on women might have been prevented."
"I warned Mr. Radimak that even though he was released on parole, a condition of parole is that he must obey all laws, and that if he violated any law and threatened any person, or damaged their property or both, his parole could be revoked," said Allred.
Last week, Radimak was assaulted by inmates in a Hawaii prison facility after being arrested for the alleged assault on the teen and her mother. He was hospitalized, postponing his arraignment, which was supposed to happen last week.
"I wouldn't wish a beating on anyone, even Mr. Radimak, but I wonder if that's taught him anything? I don't know," Allred said.
His injuries were visible during Thursday's arraignment. He entered a not guilty plea to the two counts of assault and one charge of unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle.
"We will be following this case in Hawaii closely," said Allred. "My California clients are dedicated to seeing justice done."
Radimak's recent arrest comes less than a year after he was released from prison for the Southern California road attacks. He was sentenced to five years in prison, but served less than a year.
"I was infuriated when I heard the news that Nathaniel Radimak, who was on parole for crimes he committed against women in Los Angeles, was arrested for allegedly assaulting two more women in Hawaii," said Gracia Palma, one of Radimak's accusers who also spoke during Friday's news conference. "This is exactly what we feared. I do not believe that a short time behind bars for the crimes he committed in Los Angeles County was enough. This latest failure highlights how broken and ineffective the system truly is. It's disheartening and enraging to see it fall short yet again."
In 2023, California Highway Patrol arrested Radimak in connection with other assaults he was accused of committing while driving a Tesla Model X. The highway patrol said the assaults were recorded on a dashcam video, which showed the Tesla did not have a rear license plate.
Radimak's trial in Hawaii is scheduled for July 21. If he were to post bail, Allred said he'd be held on a no-bail warrant for a parole violation.
"Even if Mr. Radimak could post it, he would not be released. He would still be held on a 'no-bail warrant' as a result of his parole violation in Los Angeles," Allred said.
Allred says, if he is convicted, she would like Radimak to serve the maximum time in Hawaii and then serve the remainder of his previous California sentence for violating his parole.
