Of all the horrible instances of rolling coal caught on video, this is the worst.
A Redditor shared a video in which someone opened a door at a Whataburger so a thick cloud of diesel exhaust could take over the room.
There was laughing and disbelief, and the patrons quickly scattered to avoid the toxic fumes.
Rolling coal is illegal because it relies on aftermarket devices that bypass vehicles' emissions control systems. The federal Clean Air Act regulates the misconduct, and the Department of Justice in September went after eBay for selling such products, which could result in $2 billion in fines.
The most infamous case of rolling coal happened around the time of this video. Near Houston, a teenager ran over six cyclists while allegedly engaging in the misbehavior. He was later indicted on six counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
"Rolling coal when a person is in the vicinity and when the individual rolling coal intentionally or knowingly causes that excess exhaust to contact that bystander is AT A MINIMUM an assault," according to a press release from the Waller County District Attorney's office.
"They are causing their vehicle to 'spit' on a living, breathing, human being that is worthy of dignity and not having his or her person violated. That simple assault is easily elevated to a jail eligible offense if bodily injury occurs, which can be caused by entry of toxic particles into mouth, nose and eyes."
Many coal rollers have been collared, whether by environmental police or officers on horseback or via karmic retribution — such as crashing into a highway barrier — but it doesn't appear that was the case here.
It's a shame because rolling coal presents deadly health risks. Diesel exhaust is carcinogenic, and it contributes to the production of ground-level ozone acid rain, damaging crops, trees, and other vegetation and entering the human food chain by way of water, produce, dairy, and fish, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Witnesses to rolling coal assaults can report the actor or vehicle to authorities.
"Is nobody gonna talk about his a****** accomplice who held the door open for this to happen?" one commenter said. "Charge him too."
Another wrote, "Coal rolling should be a felony. It's basically a premeditated attack with toxic chemicals. Imprison these sociopaths and this behavior will subside."
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