A disturbing video out of Tallulah, Louisiana, is making the rounds online after showing a local man returning to the scene of a hit-and-run crash armed with an assault-style rifle, hurling threats, and firing a round as stunned residents looked on.
The footage, originally posted to Instagram by @seeracists and later shared to Reddit, captures 56-year-old Robert Ray Fortenberry stepping out of a silver pickup truck, yelling profanities, and brandishing a rifle at Black residents gathered outside their home.
What follows is chaos, as Fortenberry paces across the yard shouting threats, weapon in hand, before discharging a single round. Gasps can be heard off-camera as the cameraman holds his position rather than returning fire. Police later confirmed that Fortenberry was arrested on multiple charges, including aggravated assault with a firearm, hate crimes, and terrorizing.
Much of the Reddit discussion centered on the person behind the camera, who appeared to remain armed but chose not to escalate the situation.
“The balls of the cameraman to NOT shoot. Holy shit. He saw the threat and realize his chances weren’t great rifle vs pistol and he made a damned smart call,” wrote one user.
Others echoed that restraint, noting the danger of unleashing gunfire in a residential neighborhood. One commenter summed it up:
“It’s a big ask for the guy to draw aim and hit a guy with an already readied rifle. The fact he had that in mind with all that adrenaline going is commendable.”
The video sparked outrage, with users condemning Fortenberry’s behavior and mocking both his appearance and demeanor.
“What a racist inbred f***ing hick. Hope his ass is locked up,” one commenter posted bluntly.
“Holy smokes he’s only 56 years old. I thought he was at least 80. He’s not a well man… sounds like a cartoon character,” another added.
Others compared the incident to a scene from King of the Hill or even Joe Dirt, with one user remarking that Fortenberry “sounds one step away from the ‘home is where u make it’ dude.”
According to Tallulah Police Chief Buster McCoy, officers arrested Fortenberry later that day, recovering the rifle. He is being held in Madison Parish Jail on a $215,000 bond, facing eight counts of illegal use of a weapon, aggravated assault with a firearm, hate crimes, and terrorizing.
The arrest also comes just weeks after Fortenberry was involved in a separate crash where he had to be airlifted from an overturned 18-wheeler accident.
For many, though, the surreal footage of him stomping through a front yard with a rifle will be the lasting image. As one Redditor dryly put it:
“This guy is lucky he wasn’t airlifted to the hospital for the second time in a month.”
