Tesla driver convicted of attacking people with a pipe on Southern California roads eligible for release

Despite serving less than one year of his five-year sentence, the Tesla driver who attacked other commuters throughout Los Angeles County in 2022 and 2023 is eligible for parole.

In January 2023, the California Highway Patrol arrested Nathaniel Walter Radimak for attacking eight people between 2022 and 2023, including a road rage incident where he repeatedly hit another driver's car with a metal pipe on the 2 Freeway. 

Prosecutors charged him with four counts of assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury and criminal threats, plus one felony count of vandalism, two misdemeanor counts of vandalism and one misdemeanor count of elder abuse. 

While prosecuting the case, the District Attorney's Office advocated for a no-bail hold because Radimak's lengthy criminal history spanned nearly two decades, multiple states, and multiple jurisdictions.   

During the trial, Radimak had a pending case where he was accused of allegedly attacking another driver in a road rage incident that occurred in Hollywood in January 2020. When officers searched his car, Radimak allegedly had steroids and more than $30,000. He was charged with one felony count of possession of a sale of a controlled substance and one misdemeanor count of battery.  

"Motorists in Los Angeles shouldn't have to live in fear of being attacked while simply driving on the freeway," District Attorney George Gascón said when his office announced the charges.

Ultimately, a judge sentenced Radimak on Oct. 3, 2023, to five years in prison for stalking, criminal threat to cause great bodily injury or death, assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury, vandalism, and injury to elder causing death or great bodily injury.

However, a year into his five-year sentence, Radimak is eligible for parole because of the time he spent in jail between January and October 2023. 

For the 248 days he spent inside LA County Jail, Radimak received 424 days of pre-sentence credit, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Because of the credit, the convicted felon is now eligible for parole less than a year into his five-year sentence. At least one of his victims received notice that he would be released later in August. 

The Department of Corrections could not confirm the specific release dates or movement "because of safety and security issues."