Friends and family are asking for help for a woman who was seriously injured by another driver during a road rage incident in Lexington.
The medical bills are mounting for Kasey Dickens, who suffered a concussion, a broken nose and an eye injury in the August 19 attack.
Lexington chef Ouita Michel wrote in a Facebook post Saturday that Dickens, “who was recently the victim of a brutal and unprovoked attack while driving,” is the general manager of the Honeywood restaurant, near Nicholasville Road and Man O’ War Boulevard.
“This devastating incident has left her with significant medical expenses,” Michel wrote. “Now, more than ever, Kasey needs the strength and support of the Central Kentucky community she has so faithfully served. We ask everyone to come together and help her through this challenging time.”
A GoFundMe account has been set up by Dickens’ sister, Davis Dickens, who wrote that she may need more than one facial surgery as she recovers. She said the funds will also help with “legal and living expenses due to missed work hours.”
The family reached out to groups that support victims of crime, “but an emergency room visit, CT scan, office visits and surgery/anesthesia have placed a significant financial burden on her,” Davis Dickens wrote in a Facebook post.
Kasey Dickens told WKYT she was standing with her windows open at a red light on South Limestone near the intersection of Virginia Avenue when she was attacked.
“I hear someone swearing. He’s cursing at me, grabbing my shoulder,” she told the television station. “Before I have a chance to move, I’m moved. This man then hits me in the face.”
She said the man who attacked her told her she got too close to his vehicle, a silver four-door Kia, WKYT reported.
An arrest warrant has been issued for the suspect, Darrell Jason Blankenship, 43, who is wanted for second-degree assault and third-degree terroristic threatening, Bluegrass Crime Stoppers reported this week.
Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward for information leading to Blankenship’s arrest.
Blankenship is described as white, with short black hair and brown eyes. He is approximately 5-foot-9 and weighs approximately 120 pounds.
This is not the first time Blankenship has faced criminal charges.
In 2017, he pleaded guilty to fourth-degree assault, domestic violence, a charge that was reduced from second-degree assault, after police said he stabbed another man in an apartment on Dinsmore Drive. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison.
Blankenship also pleaded guilty in 2014 to being an accessory after the fact to second-degree arson after setting fire to a home on Sherman Avenue the year before, according to police.
