A safety alert is being issued after video that has gone viral shows a woman fighting back against carjackers, putting her life on the line.
The video is dramatic.
Melissa Smith was pumping gas one minute and fighting off car thieves the next.
"(I) didn't see him until I saw him get into my car," the victim, Melissa Smith, said. "Someone was in my car. And (I had) my, 'Oh, hell, this isn't happening to me today' moment. He looked at me and he laughed at me, which really irritated me."
What’s more important -- your property or prudence in a dangerous situation?
"I had the thought in my head, 'Do I go after my purse or do I stop my car?'" Smith said. "And the price tag of my car flashed through my head."
"So many things could have gone wrong in this situation," News4Jax crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said. "I would strongly advise that anyone who finds themselves in this situation to let that person go.”
Melissa Smith’s impulse was to hop on top of the hood of her SUV and hang on.
Gil Smith said Melissa got lucky.
"I was in fear for her life at first," Gil Smith said. "I didn't know what the end result was. It turned out to work out OK this time, but she still had some of her personal items stolen. What scared me is this person could have had a gun and could have shot her. Or if she's someone who carried a weapon in her car, they could have grabbed her gun and shot her."
Melissa Smith said she didn’t initially see the Cadillac pull up and the car thief crouch down and get behind the wheel of her car. When she did, and when she jumped on the hood and wouldn’t let go, she had to withstand the thief slamming on the brakes a couple times, trying to dislodge her.
The thief eventually gave up, jumped out of her still-moving car and took off.
Melissa Smith then had another split decision to make about braving lanes of traffic to stop her car.
When it was all over, she gathered herself, gasped and finally crumpled, amazed at her bold, and maybe brazen, reaction.
"(It) isn't the smartest and safest thing, but it was my -- I went with my instinct," Melissa Smith said.
The thief got away with Melissa Smith’s purse, phone and wallet.
Gil Smith’s advice is to never think you are safe and secure just because you’re making a quick trip. Smith said it's always a good idea to take your keys with you and lock the door while you're fueling up.
CNN contributed to this report.