ATTLEBORO, Mass. (WBZ) - A Massachusetts mother says she’s thankful to still be with her children after she was body-slammed in an apparent road rage incident that police say happened following a fender bender.

Hailea Soares says it’s a wonder she’s home from the hospital after she was slammed head-first on the ground in an apparent road rage incident around 9 a.m. last Friday. She suffered a very serious injury to her skull and eye socket, and her knee and foot were broken.

“All I could think was, ‘I’m probably not going to be able to walk again.’ I can’t even tend to my kids. I can’t even walk up a staircase. I can’t put my own sock on my foot,” Soares said.

Investigators say the incident happened after Soares was in a fender bender with the suspect, 26-year-old Gladior Kwesiah. She accidentally hit his car from behind at an intersection.

“He was just being a jerk off on the road,” Soares said.

After the minor crash, witnesses say Kwesiah banged on the roof of Soares’ car and yanked the petite woman from it. He then allegedly body-slammed her to the ground. A witness filmed the encounter.

“By the time I realized I was in the air… I thought to myself, ‘I might die right now,’” Soares said. “It was a weird sensation I felt on my face. I realized I was on the ground and rolled over. There was blood dripping all over my hands.”

Police say they found the mother of two in the road, crying and bleeding from her head. She was taken to the hospital.

Kwesiah was arrested and charged with assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, vandalizing property and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

“I don’t know if he was having a bad day. I don’t know what that was, but if that’s the type of person he is, I don’t think he belongs in society with the rest of us,” Soares said.

As she recovers, Soares is just thankful she can see her children, ages 1 and 8, again. She is asking the community to pray for her recovery and for everyone to be kind to one another.

“Nothing else really matters in life except the people you love that are close to you,” she said.

Kwesiah was arraigned last Friday in Attleboro District Court. His bail was set at $2,500 cash along with a condition that he has no contact with the victim.

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