My MIL, me, and my two kids (2F, 4M at the time) were returning from the hospital (my son was sick, cold, stomach issues etc) when another car hit our car. MIL was driving. Nobody was hurt, and it wasn't at all my MIL's fault. Other driver was drunk, but four men got out to hurl abuses at my MIL. She got out of the car to confront them and started screaming her head off.

These men were clearly drunk and aggressive. We live in the countryside, and we were in a sort of remote area (only two stores near) so I kept telling MIL to get in the car. My MIL is very sweet but she can be quite stubborn and headstrong when she needs to be, so she was deadset on holding on to them to stop them from fleeing the scene.They were also drunk, so she didn't want to let them go.

One guy noticed me screaming MIL to get in the car, pulled out a plier and started banging on the hood of the car, screaming, "Get out! Get out of the car!" and coming towards me.

I panicked almost immediately, as my daughter started crying, and my son was just screaming "Grandma, grandma!"

By that time, some people had come out of the stores to see what was going on, to help etc. I honestly don't know what came over me, but I saw them resort to violence (one guy punched her) I decided to prioritise my kids' safety first.

I may not have been thinking rationally, but I got out of the car, got the kids out, and went into the nearest store. Then, I called the police and my BIL. BIL showed up first, in just 10 mins, and joined in the argument. I waited in that store for almost 45 mins, my kids and me sweating like crazy due to the heat and terror. Then, I'm ashamed even more to admit, I called a taxi and went home as I didn't think I could be of any help with a sick child and a screaming toddler clinging to me.

Later, I learned that the police showed up three hours late (I'm from a poor country. In these rural parts, the police usually don't give a shit), and by that time, these guys had fled the scene anyway. My MIL had nasty bruises on her knees, cheek, shoulder etc, but was overall fine, no fatal injuries, thank god.

This happened a year ago, and my MIL and two BILs still haven't let me forget it. They didn't speak to me or my kids for six months, saying I left their mother to die. Things have gotten better, but they still constantly bring it up to mock me at family gatherings. My MIL has been distant since then, too, and my SIL is the only one who still treats me and my kids nicely, doesn't blame me etc.

My BILs always bring up how I left their mother to die. Pretty clear they resent me for not intervening. They say I ran away, that the kids were safe in the car, and I could've helped, she could've been murdered, I abandoned her like a dog, didn't even wait for police, go out to check if she was okay once BIL arrived etc.

I admit that I was a coward. Looking back, I realize I panicked and acted irrationally. However, at the time, all I could think was that if something happened to me, my kids might lose the only parent they have left. (My wife passed away a year ago, two months before this event.) Better a cowardly father than a dead father.

However, guilt has been eating away at me, and though, I was sure I did the right thing initially, I'm not so sure anymore. What example am I setting for my kids by running away instead of helping their own grandma? After a year of this shame and guilt, I'm here to ask you, AITA? I'm ready to know. Tell me I was wrong, or tell me I was right. I just wish to forget and move on now.