Decatur man’s car crashes into home after deadly road rage shooting

A car crashed into a home following a road rage shooting that killed the father of a 22-month-old boy, DeKalb County police said — and the gunman remains on the run.

Officers were called to the scene on Columbia Drive late Wednesday, Lt. Lonzy Robertson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. When officers arrived, they found the driver’s body inside the car.

The incident started about 11:55 p.m., when the 22-year-old victim, identified as Cedric Williams of Decatur, turned south on Columbia Drive from Memorial Drive and cut off the shooter, Robertson said.

“The suspect vehicle pulled alongside the victim's car and began shooting,” he said. “The victim died instantly. His car left the road, then crashed into a house.”

Channel 2 Action News reported that Williams was shot in the head.

Margaret Towe, who owns the home, was awakened by her partner’s screams after the car hit the garage and went through the back of the residence.

“My first reaction was to call the cops and try to get the people out,” Towe said. “We got everyone out except the driver.”

Towe said the passengers, a 20-year-old woman and a 39-year-old woman, were panicking, trying to get their friend out.

The situation was “extremely scary” because she was about 10 feet from the car and the living room smelled like gas, Towe said.

“The names of the two women who were in the car with (the victim) are not being released at this time for their protection,” Robertson said, “while we try to identify the suspect and the vehicle he was in.”

Structural damage trapped the car in the home.

“It was really hard to tear people out of there without the assistance of the firefighters,” Towe said.

The shooter was driving a dark-colored SUV, described as a Mercury Mountaineer, police said.

No other injuries were reported.

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