Ohio Woman Critically Injured by Rock Prank from Highway Overpass

Courtesy the Budd Family(NEW YORK) — A school teacher and mother of four is fighting for her life after a freak accident on a Pennsylvania highway.

Sharon Budd, 52, of Uniontown, Ohio, was traveling with her family and friends on a road trip to New York City Thursday. The group was driving under an overpass. Budd was sitting in the car’s passenger seat.

And then, “an explosion,” as her husband Randy Budd calls it.

“My daughter, who was driving, starts screaming,” Randy Budd said. “She said, ‘Dad, what’s going on?’”

A rock, about 8 inches thick, had crashed through the windshield and struck Sharon Budd in the head.

Investigators say the rock was thrown by a group of teenagers playing a prank from the overpass. Two brothers, ages 17 and 18, are accused of throwing the rock, facing felony charges of aggravated assault and conspiracy, among other charges. Additional charges could be filed against two more teens, police said.

Budd has a difficult recovery ahead, her husband said.

“They know there’s brain damage. To the extent, they do not know,” Randy Budd said.

The injury has delayed the deployment of Sharon Budd’s son Lucas, who was scheduled to leave for Afghanistan with the Ohio National Guard. Now, he and his relatives have spent their time sitting by Budd’s bedside, hoping for her recovery.

“She squeezed my hand a couple days ago, so she’s responding,” Lucas Budd said. “So it’s hopeful.”

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