facebook and follow us on twitter. and don't go away. "20/20" starts right now. tonight on "20/20" -- losing it! it's a crazy holiday weekend. so, is it fireworks or road rage that's exploding? >> [ bleep ]! get the [ bleep ] out of your car. i'm going to [ bleep ]! >> road rage in san diego. but that was just words. this one has a fight -- and a gun. >> i was honestly scared for my life. >> hate on the highway. plus, losing it behind closed doors. >> you're out of your [ bleep ] mind! >> the prominent surgeon who was a hero. >> we'll care for you, just as i care for my own family. >> everywhere but home. >> he slapped me, he pushed me, he grabbed my hear. >> behind closed doors? >> pretty scary. >> marriage and meltdowns.

and, you heard of order in the court? this is more like no order in the court. >> you remember me? you remember me? >> judge this! plus -- forget little league. this is the latest spectator sport. brawls, balls, bleacher attacks and some literal grand slams. is it the summer heat? why is everybody losing it? here's david muir and elizabeth vargas. >> good evening and we hope you're having a great extended holiday weekend. a lot of time when people are visiting their families, the beach, hitting the highways. but hopefully not hitting each other when they lose it to road rage. >> and with nearly 35 million people on the road this fourth of july, there's the possibility for a lot of rage. blue collar, white collar, it doesn't matter. sometimes it's just words and threats, but sometimes it is a fistfight or even involves a loaded gun. here's dan harris. >> reporter: summertime and the

living is easy. except when the roads look like this. which can cause this. >> these guys are fighting. >> reporter: take a look at this recent brawl in the middle of a california intersection. it is between, of all people, a lawyer and a retired cop. and just last month, a driver on this l.a. highway cut off another driver, threw a can at him and got out of his car to yell. aggressive drivers are a growing threat on the roads this summer. in fact, the most recent study from the u.s. department of transportation attributes more than 1,000 deaths to road rage since 2007. >> you must be a damn punk, tried to run me off the road. >> reporter: what you're watching right here is a road rage incident that goes to dramatic extremes. as you will see, this situation is about to escalate even further. first, though, the back story. investigators say on a sunday

afternoon, bradley turner and his wife christy were driving in their toyota suv in james city, north carolina, when this chevy pickup, driven by josh berry with his friends nathan and shaylee inside, may have cut the turners off. >> he got up beside me, leaned out the window, pointing at me, saying he's going to kill me. >> reporter: the chase was on. for 30 to 40 minutes, with their 4-year-old child in the backseat, the turners tailed the young trio. josh berry says he tried to lose them, but they followed him all the way to his friend, nathan's, driveway. >> when we see him getting out of the car, i threw my truck in park, turned off the keys and looked at nathan, i was like, "i guess he's really going to come up here. ". >> reporter: in that moment, berry's friend started rolling her cell phone video camera. >> and when he walked up, i just looked at him, he said a couple words, threw a punch and it was on like donkey kong. >> reporter: on like donkey

kong. turner goes down, and remember, his child is in the backseat. >> when i looked up, the first time i looked up, honestly, that's when i seen the kids in the car. that's the only reason i didn't keep kicking. that's the only reason i kind of looked up to see what she was doing, because i looked up and seen the kid's face just staring at me, crying for their dad. >> reporter: and look what happens next. >> and we see his wife coming down the car, and she's got a gun and hands it to him. her facial expression is completely calm. >> reporter: christy turner hands her husband a pistol. >> get out of here. >> reporter: he cocks it, and it accidentally goes off. >> all we heard was click, click, click. >> reporter: that's when the camera goes off, too. >> when i heard the click, everything stopped. >> i was honestly scared for my life. and after those clicks, man, my heart dropped and everything got real after that. >> everybody gets to see the fun part of it. we're the ones that saw a gun pointed to our face and thought we was about to die. >> reporter: eventually, police say, turner pulls away, but then he circles back and fires shots into josh berry's empty pickup. berry calls 9-1-1.

>> carteret county 9-1-1. go ahead with the call. >> oh, he shot out my back glass of my truck. holy [ bleep ]! >> reporter: road rage has been around since the horse and buggy, probably, all the way up from the model t. but what's different now is that everybody's got a video camera. all over the internet, you can see drivers coming unglued. >> come on! >> reporter: yelling, spitting. hitting. and throwing just about everything from coffee to crutches. look at this woman on a highway in france. and check out these australians turning a highway into a boxing ring. one of the guys brings out a weapon. this man gets his foot stuck as the car drives away. >> get the [ bleep ] out, you [ bleep ]. let's go! >> reporter: a marine, a recipient of a purple heart

overseas, losing it in traffic on camp pendleton. so, what is it about being behind the wheel of a car that makes us flip out? >> [ bleep ] cut me off? ahh! >> well, being in a car, there's a sense of power and control. and when you feel like you've been slighted, you feel determined to track that person down, almost like vigilante justice. but you are the one who's the sheriff and the judge and is going to be the enforcer. >> reporter: exacerbating matters is the fact that most americans hate their commute. in polls, we rate it as one of the worse parts of our day, on par with having a meeting with our boss. >> what the [ bleep ] is this guy doing, [ bleep ]! >> reporter: to avoid the mental and physical wear and tear of the road, some people are coming up with alternative commutes. this is zach schwitzky who paddles from new jersey to manhattan and loves it, although

i did not. >> probably the most relaxing part of my day. >> reporter: this is the most relaxing part of your day? the rest of your day must suck. as zach paddled happily along, i was feeling quite rageful. that little dot back in the distance? that's me. >> there is our correspondent. >> reporter: ultimately, they had to tow me in. all right. this is how a real kayaker does it. there is a lesson here, though. if you fail to find a mode of transport that doesn't flip you out, the potential downside is huge. remember bradley and christy turner? these are their mug shots. they turned themselves in and they're now facing a whole litany of charges. police they say didn't charge the young men because they were defending themselves. >> a lot of people are saying, you know, you should've just put the phone down and called the cops, done the right thing. but it's like, if you're in that predicament, what are you going to do? you don't know. it's the heat of the moment.

your adrenaline's going, you're not going to think right. defended ourselves. and that's what we did. >> reporter: earning a couple of broken bones in the process. meanwhile, bradley turner appeared in court, battered and bruised with his attorney by his side. >> we're dealing with a man who is a father and a husband and a hard-working man and he was just completely terrified. >> reporter: all because he lost his cool on the road, he is now looking at prison time of upwards of four years, if convicted. >> both bradley and christy turner have been indicted. she for misdemeanor assault, he on a felony charge for allegedly firing a gun. they'll both be back in court this summer. but the question tonight, have you ever been involved in a road rage incident,iter from the giving or receiving end? be honest. we're on twitter throughout tonight's program. use #ab doctor 2020. we'll be right back. next, a famous surgeon, with multiple wives. >> he slapped he, he pushed me.

>> multiple arrests. and multiple meltdowns. why does a man with so much to lose keep losing it? >> see a man driven to insanity. >> when we come back. i found our colors. we've made a decision. great, let's go get you set up... we need brushes. you should check out our workshops... push your color boundaries while staying well within your budget walls. i want to paint something else. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the the home depot. right now get $5 off one-gallon cans and $20 off five-gallon buckets of select paints and stains we throw out over $500 ziploin food every year.. heavmoreit with ziploc freezer bags featuring sm. edge to edgeionhear. [ ohns. here to take your lettuce from drab to fab with lean cuisine salad additions.

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"20/20" losing it continues with elizabeth vargas. >> what are the professions we most count on to keep a steady hand, to be calm and keep from losing it? well, doctors would certainly be near the top of that list. but here's a doctor who made national headlines for a very different reason. according to authorities, he lost it on his family, a far cry from the family man he portrayed himself as in television commercials. tonight, play a little compare and contrast between his public and his private personas. losing it at 30,000 feet isn't pretty. like these twin sisters settling a family dispute in the aisles of coach class. or these dudes duking it out in the not so friendly skies earlier this year.

but last winter, when houstonians heard the news that a local doctor had allegedly used his surgically trained hands to choke a flight attendant, you might have to excuse them if they thought, "oh, no, not again." you see, this isn't just any doctor. his name is michael brown. >> no pictures. this is ridiculous. >> reporter: and in recent years, he's had more appointments in courtrooms than operating rooms. >> i personally believe that he never sees himself as anything but a victim. and that he feels anyone that disagrees with him must be punished. and i think he's a very angry man. >> reporter: at one time, michael brown was one of america's leading hand surgeons, an innovator in a treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome with a taste for finer things. for the doctor, that meant a life of texas excess. and exes. he'd already been through two wives by the time he met

20-year-old darlina in 1993. what was it about him that did captivate you? >> he was very sweet. just very attentive to me, treated me like a princess in the beginning. >> reporter: did he buy you gifts? >> yeah, he absolutely spoiled me in the beginning. >> reporter: after two weeks, they were living together. married just about a year later. though it almost didn't happen except for darlina's mom stepping in. >> when they decided to get married, and it was my fault, she decided on the wedding day, no, i don't want to get married. and i thought it was the jitters. >> reporter: to the outside world, brown looked like a big-hearted healer. his tv commercials brought patients from around the nation to his houston offices. he had fame. he had fortune. >> i personally train the doctors in the brown procedure. and the brown hand center will care for you, just as i care for my own family. >> daddy's baby girl!

>> reporter: but darlina says she soon found out how brown treated his actual family. >> he used to be very, very sweet, very attentive to my needs. very -- i mean, just abnormally sweet to me at all times. and then we get married and things change. >> reporter: it was on the honeymoon that you saw the first example of mike and his temper? >> we fought the entire time. we went to maui, which is supposed to be -- and it is gorgeous. however, we fought every single day. >> reporter: back home, darlina says her husband's volcanic tempter often erupted when she'd go out clubbing with her girlfriends, suspecting she was cheating, especially when he drank. add to that volatile mix the doctor's beloved gun collection. darlina was frightened. and after an early separation, she says things only got worse.

so what happened when you moved back in? >> that's when the abuse started. he slapped me. he pushed me. he grabbed my hair, hit my head up against the wall. >> reporter: why did you stay in that house? >> he mentally brainwashed me. if i told him i was going to leave, he'd threaten me. >> he would talk down to her. she wasn't good. she never did anything right. she couldn't cook. i've been over there when he's, "why did you fix this? this tastes like slop." you keep doing that to a person, you're belittling them. and it's mental abuse. >> i didn't think that anybody would believe me because he's the one that had all the money. he's the one that had all the power. >> they're in love. they feel like they can change the person. and the abuser makes the woman feel like it's her fault. and if you feel guilty and you feel vulnerable and you feel like it's something you've done, then there is this fear about leaving. >> reporter: by the year 2000, darlina and dr. brown were still a couple with one baby and another on the way. darlina figured that, being pregnant, she'd get a break from her husband's scalding rage. she figured wrong.

so, what happened toward the end of your pregnancy, the incident that finally blew the lid off? >> i'm watching a show on tv at about 10:00 and here he comes into the door. mike comes in, and he immediately starts yelling that i don't love him. i go into the kitchen to grab the phone, like i always did, to call my mom. and he grabs the phone from me and starts beating me over the head with the phone. >> reporter: she claims he grabbed her by the hair and dragged her into the bedroom. >> we had a four poster bed. and i saw the bedpost on the floor. and i'm like, "oh, no, this is going to be bad." and -- i was so used to it, though. >> reporter: really? >> yeah. i was used to it, which was just crazy. the next thing i know, i am on the ground and he's sitting on my stomach, being seven months pregnant, telling me that i'm effing not going to have that baby. he took the bedpost and was beating me over the back with

that bedpost. >> reporter: she managed to escape, but says he now started shooting one of those guns. lukely, he missed. she's able to call 911. >> i can't even open my right eye. i'm bleeding. i'm seven months pregnant. >> her face was all swollen. her mouth was huge where he'd beat on her on her head. they had the long bedposts that are on their bed, had this huge bedpost mark -- i'm sorry -- all the way down her back. >> reporter: and soon after, dr. brown is arrested. this is police video right after dr. brown was taken into custody. >> he has gone nuts. we're probably going to have to restrain him further. >> reporter: smashing his head against the squad car window. >> the very last abuse that he did on me, it made it totally public. it was in the news, and i was in the hospital for three days. and at that time, i felt that, you know what, everybody knows

about it. this is my -- this is my way out. >> reporter: brown was charged with assault and darlina filed for divorce. as the separate proceedings worked their way through the courts, evidence turned up, showing dr. brown's alleged behavior, going from the be-lidge rent to the bizarre. >> i think we put a gun to our head to get attention. maybe a little bit, but we know its fuel. >> reporter: that's dr. brown, recorded on his own video camera in 2001. why is he holding a gun to his own head? he claimed he was simply working on a hollywood script. >> people who do commit suicide, they don't do it to hurt people or because they want to do it or because they are cowards. they do they do it because they are being tortured, in agony, and that's the only way to stop the pain. >> reporter: but darlina doesn't buy it. she says it's evidence of a man on the edge.

so that scene we see on this videotape was actually what you were seeing on a pretty regular basis inside this house? >> yes. >> reporter: this, the prominent houston doctor. >> yes. >> reporter: he was really doing behind closed doors? >> yes. pretty scary. >> reporter: dr. brown claims he acted in self-defense the night he was arrested, but the jury doesn't believe him. darlina won a $3 million divorce settlement. >> he can't hurt me this time because everybody knows. >> i think if you had to describe mike in one word, it would probably be misunderstood. >> reporter: brown's lawyer is brian wice. >> it was his continuing bad choice in women, particularly a profile, if you will, of the same woman, who would repeatedly show up in his life. somebody looking to get paid. somebody who viewed mike as an atm. >> reporter: though he turned down our request for an interview, dr. brown did speak in this deposition.

>> darlina lied on the witness stand. her mother lied on the witness stand. the day of the trial. and the jury believed darlina and not the truth. >> reporter: ultimately, he pleaded no contest to aggravated assault charges in exchange for ten years probation and set off to resume his life. but the doctor's inner demons would not be silenced. there would soon be a new wife. new accusations. more sensational headlines. and another judgment day in court. >> he went in a rage and grabbed her. >> he was a dangerous man, and i wanted him to be held accountable for what he did this time. >> reporter: stay with us. >> look at my face. >> reporter: stay with us. >> look at my face. see a man driven to insanity. at ♪ it's got something for everyone ♪ ♪ the car of the future many have said ♪ ♪ 'cause at the pump it's miles ahead ♪ ♪ and let's hum, hum, hum, hum ♪ let's hum

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"20/20," losing it, continues. reporter: dr. michael brown looks anything but the face of rage in this home video with his children following his divorce from darlina. >> say hi! >> reporter: maybe that's why all the sensational publicity surrounding his aggravated assault case didn't ruin his practice. >> the caring father, the passionate ceo, somebody who has done so much good for so many people. >> reporter: dr. brown's patients either don't know or don't care about his personal controversy. after his 2001 divorce, brown's business thrives. several new offices open. he's got a private plane. new homes. and things were going great. that is, until he was called before the texas board of medicine. it seems the private plane wasn't the only way the good doctor was getting high.

>> he certainly seemed to have a problem with cocaine and that's how he ultimately lost his license. >> reporter: even though his license was revoked, brown continued to live a charmed life. >> hi, baby! >> reporter: there was a beautiful new wife, rachel. and a new family and more children. dr. brown polished his image, distributing these photos from a self-published book. showcasing swanky parties, social events with luminaries like president bush. brown even won a humanitarian award. but once again, behind the scenes, the picture perfect marriage was collapsing. >> it sounds like there's an aspect of his personality that is all about control and him just being able to, in spite of everything that he has to lose, express himself in whatever way he wants. there's something about the way his personality functions that he continues to just blame and

react and hurt people. and he finds that acceptable. >> you're out of your mother [ bleep ] mind. they did not. it cost $50,000 [ bleep ] since you called the [ bleep ] police, rachel. >> reporter: rachel recorded these phone calls from michael in late 2011. >> i am not the enemy, rachel. >> you attacked me, michael. >> you [ bleep ] attacked me. >> reporter: rachel, who declined to do an interview with "20/20," wanted proof that dr. brown was out of control. >> would you ask yourself that, you stupid [ bleep ]. [ bleep ]! >> reporter: those recordings became evidence after rachel accused brown of twisting her arm, as if he meant to break it. prosecutors charged him with felony assault. >> he's a repeat offender and i think and thought he was a dangerous man and i wanted him to be held accountable for what he did this time. >> the trial of a prominent former hand surgeon is about to

get under way. >> reporter: the case hits the local news. and rachel takes the stand to tell her story. >> he reached back. when he threw it at me, i moved my head. >> i'm really proud of rachel brown. she stood up to him. she testify and she told the jury what he did to her. >> reporter: but her testimony isn't convincing, and dr brown's lawyers call her a money grubbing gold digger. >> it was all about money. i think that's what happened in his previous divorce case. it was all about money. any troubles he's had can be traced to that. >> a jury has found a former surgeon not guilty of attacking his wife. >> reporter: in the end, the jury doesn't believe rachel and dr. brown is acquitted. >> i think everybody knows who dr. brown is. a very well-known hand surgeon. but you can't judge a case on who he is, what he is. what he has, what else. but i just feel like there was not enough concrete evidence to convict him. you can't worry about any prior cases.

>> reporter: triumphant in court, brown's lawyers cut off his electronic monitor for the cameras. >> the judge has authorized me to cut it off. >> reporter: and the doctor was free, once again, to go about his business. >> i'm just relieved and want to take care of my kids and get on with my life. >> reporter: it seemed the doctor had vanquished all of his enemies. except, perhaps, himself. fast forward to that flight from london this past january. dr. brown allegedly wanted his dinner before the crew was ready. the crew claims that lead to a shouting match, which ended with brown grabbing and finally choking flight attendants, resulting in his arrest and indictment for assault. dr. brown's attorney claims his client doesn't recall any of it due to stress relievers mixed with alcohol. as for darlina, dr. brown's brutalized ex-wife? >> i can't open my right eye. i'm bleeding. >> reporter: shedd like to forget about dr. brown's behavior, too. but her emotional wounds have

yet to heal. >> i don't think he's going to change. and, you know, when you don't cake accountability for your actions, you can't change. he has never taken accountability for what he's done to me. >> reporter: doctor brown's trial for allegedly assaulting the flight attendant is scheduled for the end of this month. he has plett not guilty. we'll be right back. next -- courtroom crazy. taking the law into their own hands. literally. but what could make a judge throw a fit? >> i'll yell all i want. this is my court and i'll do what i want. >> losing it, legal style. my name is irma and this is my aha moment. many people wish for retirement, and when they retire, they sit down. i retired on friday. i was in school on monday. i am now a massage therapist, and i'm exploring the possibility of voiceovers.

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"20/20" continues. once again, david muir. >> courtrooms can be dramatic

places. suspects on trial for alleged crimes. but our jim avila has seen enough courtrooms to know they can sometimes become crime scenes themselves. and sometimes, it's a tossup between losing your temper or losing your sanity. >> reporter: the marble lined halls of justice are supposed to be a study in decorum. a place for serious situations and serious people. a place where judges insist on order in the court. but the scales of justice can produce a tinderbox of emotions. in georgia, the brother of a murder victim attacks the defendant with a chair before the trial even starts. >> [ bleep ]! >> reporter: this kentucky woman seeks a strange way to avoid jail time. and a nevada man didn't like being told he should have locked his guns up. >> i'm getting screwed here, and

i'm just supposed to sit here and take it? >> you're not going to disrupt my decision. >> reporter: it took the pleading of his parents. >> jeffrey, stop! >> reporter: and at least seven courtroom deputies to subdue this ex-marine. >> it could be the lack of control or feeling against authority. but for individuals who are violent anyway, and they get into a situation where maybe the outcome's not what they want, then they may be more likely to be violent or to lose it. >> it is not a joke. you are not in a club now. >> reporter: in february, a miami woman accused of drug possession brought an attitude to her bail hearing. let's call it nonchalant. >> we are not in a club. be serious about it. >> i'm serious about it. >> i can see your serious, all right. >> reporter: the judge is set off by her laughter and use of mocking spanish. >> bye-bye! >> adios! >> count one will be $10,000. >> reporter: but she doesn't stop there.

when her bail is doubled, she drops the f-bomb on the judge. >> are you serious? >> i am serious. adios! >> [ bleep ]. come back again. come back again. bring her back again. i believe i heard you saying to -- >> yes, i did, i'm not -- >> did you say [ bleep ]? >> actually i did. >> did you say that? >> yes, sir, i did. >> oh, you did say that? >> reporter: her flippancy gets her locked up. >> 30 days in the county jail. >> reporter: she later apologized. >> my behavior was very irrational. >> reporter: and the very forgiving judge dropped the contempt charges. that's tame fare compared to defendants we've seen punch their lawyers. he has the black eyes to prove it. lawyers shot at outside of court. and judges losing their cool in court.

>> i'll yell all i want. this is my court and i'll do what i want. do you understand me? >> reporter: and plenty of victims taking the law into their own hands. like this florida family, when a technicality resulted in a mistrial. >> you know you did it! you know you did it! you did! >> clear the courtroom! >> when you feel you don't have a voice, you're on the edge and you're looking for a way to express yourself. if you're given none, then, you know, it may come in the form of sort of erupting like a volcano. >> he ruined my [ bleep ] life! i'd like him to go to hell and rot there forever! >> reporter: sandy fonzo confronted disgraced judge mark ciaveralla outside a scranton, pennsylvania, courthouse, where he was just convicted on charges of taking bribes from private juvenile detention centers. >> do you remember me?

once i got there, that's when they came out and said, "he's not going to be taken." yeah, they're allowing him out free until sentencing. >> reporter: so just the fact that he was free is what set you off? >> yeah. i wanted to see him shackled and cuffed and taken into the system. >> reporter: fonzo's 17-year-old son edward was aggressively sentenced by the judge after he was found with drug paraphernalia at a party, a charge usually dealt with by probation. for a marijuana pipe, your son got what? >> over six months. and he came out of there and he was just never, ever the same. >> reporter: fonzo says her son had changed after his exposure to the criminal element. with his bright future decimated, he ended his own life. she blames the judge. >> his lawyer was claiming, like, yelling loud about this victory. and then i just lost it. >> and we hope someone starts -- getting the message. >> my kid's not here anymore! my kid's not here! he's dead! because of him!

he ruined my [ bleep ] life! i'd like him to go to hell and rot there forever! >> ma'am, come on. >> no, you know what he told everybody in court? they need to be held accountable for their actions. you need to be! do you remember me? do you remember my son, an all-star wrestler? and i do remember he couldn't look at me. he just had his head -- his back to me the whole time. you scumbag! >> reporter: did you get to stand up in court and say something? >> no, no. and that was a big slap in the face. that would've been wonderful. i wanted to stand there and look right in his face before he was sentenced. >> reporter: in a seattle courtroom, christine henthorn doesn't just yell. she physically confronts the defendant during his sentencing. >> i remember being hauled out of court. and i wasn't shaking anymore. i just felt fine. and that was closure for me. i felt like a whole new woman. >> i think it's probably very difficult for a family member to sit in the audience and listen to a trial and try to remain calm and not want to get

themselves involved. >> reporter: and when people lose control and violence erupts, it's the court officers who are there to protect the innocent, the accused and the guilty. >> pepper, get down! >> reporter: here in new york state, they train for it. >> eight, nine! >> once we get the situation under control, yes, you might be able to see the sympathetic side to why someone acted out. >> he killed my son! >> i think there are certain circumstances when people are going to lose it and should lose it. and when you express yourself, when you use your words, you know, even if you curse, if you're loud, i mean, that's to be expected. you're human. you're not perfect. you don't want to keep everything in. >> reporter: as for sandy fonzo, she's unapologetic for losing it. in the end, what felt best? was it when he was convicted and sent away? >> it was good for me to yell at him and tell him what he did to my son. >> reporter: do you regret it at all? >> no, not at all. absolutely not at all. he received 28 years and i have

a feeling that if i didn't cause a ruckus and he walked out of there, maybe he would have gotten ten years. next -- it's the latest spectator sport. athletes in attack mode. brawls, balls, bleacher attacks. and some literal grand slams. >> congratulations, well done. >> batter up! or bases -- whatever. that's just brilliant. i know...foot-activated liftgate and great gas mileage. so much better than a foot-activated liftgate or great gas mileage. that'd be like us going to a bed or breakfast. (snoring loudly) i'm glad we picked bed. i like "and" better. yeah. and is better, the 2014 escape. only ford gives you ecoboost fuel economy and a whole lot more. go further. and an unlimited phone. switch your number to sprint,

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"20/20," losing it, continues. we go to most sporting events to see a ball being hit, but these days, it's more likely seeing somebody's head being knocked around. it is the newest kind of spectator sport. not just the agony of defeat, but the agony of the punch or the kick or the literal grand slam. and you don't have to be a sports fan to have your mouth hanging open in amazement. here's jay schadler.

>> reporter: ah, the beauty of sports. the swish. the drive. the goal. and -- >> bad boys! >> reporter: the bench clearing brawl. >> look at this. >> reporter: yes, the grand old game has a grand old tradition. losing it. umpires bear the brunt. but inanimate objects seem to take their fair share of abuse. all right, if that's how it is, i'm just going to take third base and go home. better that, i guess, than taking it out on a barrel of gatorade. and just a few weeks ago, baseball reminded us again why an eye for a eye often just leads to two black eyes, or worse. >> whoa. >> first arizona diamondbacks pitcher ian kennedy hits puig in the face. >> might have his hit nose. >> reporter: moments later, as soon as he gets the chance, really, dodger's pitcher zach

greinke retaliates. >> and did that hit him? i think it went behind him. and hit him. >> the benches clear and though nobody throwing a punch, you know where this is going. or when it's brian kegreinke's hit, he nearly loses his head. here comes the brawl, involving the player, even coaches. >> and now mark mcgwire and kirk gibson -- >> reporter: ah, the boys of summer never grow up. now, certain sports do naturally play to an athlete's anger. >> he's hanging in there. >> reporter: when you're being pummeled, pummeling in return is expected. >> i can't believe what i'm seeing. he got bit, i think. >> reporter: when mike tyson chomped down on evander holyfield's ear -- >> that's a dangerous bite. >> reporter: it became boxing's classic van gogh moment. at the other end of the spectrum

is the well-mannered world of tennis. this week, they're having high tea at wimbledon, but god save the queen, and the linesmen. david nalbandian wasn't around to lose his cool last year like he did last. >> oh, it's all over. >> super visor to the court. >> game, set, match and a possible assault charge. >> sometimes you get angry, sometime sometimes -- you cannot control that moment. >> there is a very fine line between being super competitive, being the best in the world and then losing it and going overboard. and increasingly, we're seeing athletes do that. >> reporter: for instance, serena has been anything but serene when certain umpires rule against her. >> i swear to god, i feel like taking this ball and shoving it down your [ bleep ] throat. >> reporter: meanwhile, marcos baghdatis has been a one-man wrecking crew on his rackets.

but center court for these temper tantrums belongs to mikhail youzhny. tennis's poster boy for self-destruction. >> when you are a pro athlete and you get so angry you injury yourself, well, that's got to be the dumbest thing we've ever heard. it really is dumb. >> reporter: oh, but dumb is such a relative term. certainly new york knicks amar'e stoudemire gets some dumb points for taking out his frustration on a fire extinguisher in a loss to the miami heat. >> amar'e stoudemire apparently punched a fire extinguisher. >> reporter: despite stitches, he apparently didn't injure his tweeting fingers, since he sent this lovely photo to his followers. >> when you are competing, you are physically pumped up. you are full of adrenaline. you are maximizing your physical ability. but that also revs you up. >> reporter: since we've been talking basketball, who can resist using a telestrator to plot the mayhem in this game

between the pistons and the pacers? forward drives to the bucket. spins, pushes and ignites a brawl. fans join in with a three-point dunk shot from the bleachers. sending star player out of bounds, out of reach and out of his mind. >> fans and players are going at it and the players are trying to help each other out. >> this is a disgrace. >> reporter: the player, ron artest, later changed his name to meta world peace. and we're not kidding. and then moved onto "dancing with the stars." as long as he doesn't take up tennis. >> when you have nba players, making millions, going into the stands and punching out fans, no matter how terrible the behavior of the fan, that's just as awful as it gets. >> reporter: with all that pent-up anger, thank goodness we have coaches to set a proper example. when they share the customary postgame hand shake or not. >> people putting their hall melts back on their heads as if

a fight is going to break out. >> reporter: while american athletes surely lay blame to some of the grader moments of this behavior, we should pay homage to the global village. the game is on the line and a soccer star chooses the moment to unleash the head butt -- >> oh, wow. >> reporter: seen round the world. >> i think that might be the all-time champion in terms of losing it. people watching you will never forget that you did this that day. with more people watching than would watch any other sporting event on the planet. congratulations. event on the planet. congratulations. well [ mosquitoes buzzing ]

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bart trains are rolling and the riders are back. but for how long? >> did the strike solve

anything? next we are on t