An Orinda man shot after a suspected road rage confrontation with another local resident on Las Vegas Road and La Espiral in Orinda has died at the scene.
The decedent was identified by coroner’s officials Friday as Scott Decker, 50, of Truckee and Orinda. Decker worked as a construction superintendent for a firm in Truckee.
The 72-year-old man who fired the lethal shots is believed to have stayed in his vehicle after storing a pistol of undetermined type immediately after the shooting. Police and other emergency personnel were on scene quickly and rendered life-saving procedures to the wounded man to no avail.
Police have said the shooting is being investigated as a homicide though the Tesla’s driver has been interviewed and is no longer being detained pending further investigation. His name was not released.
Neighbors reported hearing shots at the intersection at approximately 11 a.m., moments after a Toyota 4Runner pulled in front of a Tesla at the intersection, the driver of the Toyota advancing on the Tesla’s driver – allegedly pounding on the car and punching the driver – before a gun was produced by the Tesla’s driver and fired at least once.
Witnesses said the Toyota driver appeared to have been hit multiple times but that has not been confirmed, the man succumbing to his wounds at the scene.
Neighbors said the two cars are believed to have been involved in a chase of sorts up St. Stephens Drive through the neighborhood to the location where the Toyota was able to pull ahead of the Tesla and bring it to a halt.
The scene was sealed off for investigation for several hours before it was reopened by police at approximately 5:45pm.
A very sad state of the world when disagreements over traffic etiquette result in shootings and death.
Firestone 11R
Still TBD, Jeff, of course… but we take your point.
Good Lord, in Orinda?!
Afraid so, John…
The old guy shot the younger one for allegedly and repeatedly punching him. Why the old man even carries or has or doesn’t have a permit to carry will be telling. Still I’m betting he doesn’t have a permit and shooting someone for punching you is similar to the Ferguson event that caused the rioting and the BLM to occur.
Interestingly both me are Orinda residents, per KRON TV News.
Yes. Both locals as we pointed out yesterday.
He was released at the scene. If he didn’t have a ccw he would be taken to county jail on weapons charges. Thats not a cite and release citation.
Dan,
Violating CCW’s is what is known as a wobbler, could be felony, could be misdemeanor. It would be possible to do a field release for a misdemeanor, I’ve done many. Not entirely sure if the law has changed.
Firestone 11R
Ah well I’ll stand corrected by Leo, but as a ccw holder, I’m surprised you would do a cite and release on a possible self defense claim, there are multiple recent examples albeit other da’s that held valid self defense claims for multiple days of ccw holders.
This days it doesn’t matter where it is . Bad hearted people are all over the world. Not just in Orinda. It’s really sad.
My god. Incredible.
Your report says at the Las Vegas / La Espiral intersection. I’ve seen other reports of Las Vegas / Las Vegas Court. I wonder which is correct.
Neighbors within walking distance of the incident giving us the LV/LaEspiral location – as you can see in the photo. The CAD dispatch address to fire/police was given as Las Vegas/Vegas Court…
This is terrible. Please keep us updated.
Unbelievable.
Thanks for the information. We weren’t getting much.
So? it sounds like the Tesla driver shot the driver of the Toyota SUV.. after he pulled in front of the Tesla to pound on the hood after the Tesla supposedly cut him off?
I used show my anger at other drivers who either cut me off or tailgated me; now I just get of thier way / let them go. Let them wreck on a tree or somebody else. It ain’t worth it!
You were in your car-call the police you don’t kill someone-wtf what has this world come to 🤬
Exactly!
Hopefully the Tesla’s on-board cameras will show this was justified (although I think running the guy over is the right first response).
Toyota pounded on the Tesla but was hit multiple times? Who shot who? Tesla have those cameras don’t they? Sad times indeed
I’m curious to see what sort of details come to light re this. Odd.
What a sad sad thing. Unfortunately I can see such a thing occurring.
There is a four way stop at the corner of Las Vegas and La Espiral. That is where it happened. The roads are still blocked. Bad situation. Heard yelling and then gun shot. Thought it was only one but now not sure. Very upsetting.
Road re-opened
“running the guy over is the right first response”
“call the police you don’t kill someone”
20-20 hindsight by people who know next to nothing about the shooter or the decedent or what led up to the incident. A couple of points:
(1) “Running the guy over” is also deadly force. Deadly force in self defense may be justified by a reasonable belief that it’s necessary to prevent unlawful violence that could cause death or serious bodily harm. A beating with hands (and/or feet) can cause broken bones, a concussion, or worse. Especially if, as some rumors have suggested, the person assaulted is elderly. And it’s common to see news reports of beatings with fists and feet these days that go way beyond what used to be considered “teaching someone a lesson” and cross over into gratuitous brutality. But it may also turn out that the shooter’s fear was not reasonable, or that the shooter unjustifiably escalated the situation (after trying to escape) or did the equivalent of leaving a place of relative safety by rolling down the window to yell back. None of us knows, so I’d hold off on assigning blame until more information is made public.
(2) Kinda hard to call police when someone’s punching you through your car window (as had been reported to police dispatch). And by the time the police arrive, there’s plenty of time to be beaten into a coma.
(3) In a high-stress violent situation, not every option that we might think about from the leisure of sitting behind our screens sipping a cup of coffee is necessarily going to occur to someone. But in today’s world it would behoove all of us to think through scenarios and what we might do. And to maybe have some less-lethal self-defense options at hand such as pepper spray/gel or a taser to possibly facilitate an exit before having to resort to force that you might have to justify in court with serious consequences at stake.
Have to concur with Alex’s #3 above, I have suggested several times here on 24/680 that many (not all) people should consider purchasing pepper spray for self defense. While strong and not pleasant, it does no long lasting damage.
Firestone 11R
I carry pepper spray in my car and also when I walk. People are crazy
Getting my ccw was a wise choice. I stopped drinking, putting myself in bad situations, and I read multiple books on California self defense law. I’ll be curious to see if charges are filed. Usually punches don’t meet the aggravated assault threshold for likeliness to cause grave bodily injury. I’ll also be curious to see if his ccw is revoked.
Both from Orinda? Did they know one another?
Just conjecture, but this doesn’t sound like the typical garden variety random road rage incident. Rather maybe, a sad family feud escalated to its worst conclusion. Uggh! Either way, very sad and tragic.
That’s some capital-C conjecture.
Years ago, when I was young, I might react when someone cut me off or did something stupid. But not anymore, now I just shake my head and continue on, it’s not worth it. I think most road rage incidents usually have two willing participants who just won’t let it go.
I’ve noticed over the past 10 years or so, driving has gotten much worse, i.e., many people don’t use turn signals, people cut each other off and so on. Also, anyone else notice hardly anyone waves now when you let them go in front of you. I’ve always thought good manners and a bit of respect is the lubricant for a civilized society which shows kindness and decency towards each other. I have a theory on when/why it started, but I won’t go there now.
Agreed, John… and we also noticed the lamentable shift in good driving behaviors we enjoyed years ago.
I think in many ways, bad driving and bad manners go hand in hand.
Any charges for the Tesla driver?
So tragic sad and pointless.
Grapevine says they did not know each other. More than one neighbor says only one shot heard. Others say there might have been shots fired along St Stephens? The only story we heard was from the Tesla drivers 911 call. We are hoping the Tesla cameras picked up what really happened. Very sad for both families in any case. They live a mile apart. Flowers are being left where Scott died.
Hypothetically speaking, driving around with a gun in the vehicle accessible to the driver (meaning not in the trunk for the purpose of transportation) would indicate that the driver intends to use it when they judge that deadly force is necessary. Guns are not used to scare or simply harm as illustrated in this situation.