Virginia Road Rage Shooting: Joseph Adams Sentenced to Two Life Terms for Shooting Mother Molly Haskin and Her Teenage Son

Williamsburg, Virginia — A Virginia man has been sentenced to two life terms plus 19 years in prison for a violent road rage shooting that left a mother and her teenage son seriously injured last October.

According to a statement from the James City County Police Department (JCCP), Joseph Adams, 45, of Surry County, was sentenced on Monday, October 20, by the Williamsburg–James City Circuit Court. The court confirmed to PEOPLE that Adams received two life sentences for malicious assault, along with multiple additional years for firearms-related offenses.

Adams pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated malicious wounding and five other charges, including malicious shooting into an occupied vehicle and several firearms violations, stemming from the October 5, 2024, incident.

Police said the shooting occurred around 3 p.m. when Adams, driving a red Toyota Solara, opened fire on another vehicle at the intersection of Centerville Road and Monticello Avenue. The victims — identified as Molly Haskin and her teenage son — were struck by multiple bullets while riding in their car with another passenger.

Investigators stated that Adams fired multiple shots from his car into the victims’ vehicle before fleeing the scene. The victims’ car came to a stop near Monticello Avenue and Greensprings Plantation Drive, where emergency responders treated them before airlifting them to a hospital.

Adams fled the scene by boarding the Jamestown–Scotland Ferry, which was intercepted and held upon arrival in Surry County, where officers arrested him without further incident.

Molly Haskin sustained life-threatening injuries after being shot in the face, while her son was hit three times in both arms. A third occupant of the vehicle was uninjured.

Initially, Adams faced a DUI charge, but investigators later filed 23 additional offenses, including:

• 2 counts of aggravated malicious wounding

• 3 counts of brandishing a firearm

• 5 counts of reckless handling of a firearm

• 5 counts of shooting from a vehicle

During Monday’s sentencing, Adams apologized to the victims, while his defense attorney, Rob Jones, requested leniency, describing Adams as a “functioning alcoholic” struggling with mental illness and substance abuse issues, according to WAVY.

In emotional testimony, Haskin recounted how she told herself, “I will not die,” as she was airlifted to a hospital in Richmond. Her son also took the stand, describing the pain of being shot and witnessing his mother’s suffering.

Joseph Adams remains incarcerated at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail, authorities confirmed.