Eligible to retire and begin traveling with his wife of 40-some years, Steve Ebert agreed to stay on as superintendent with the Cordova Recreation and Park District until the end of the year to help steer the district through tough economic times, according to his family.

Almost two weeks ago, that meant laying off 18 people in what parks officials described as a "last resort" effort to cut $800,000 from the district's personnel budget.

In the drizzly hours of Monday morning, Sacramento County sheriff's detectives allege, one of those former employees drove to Hagan Community Park in Rancho Cordova and waited. When Ebert, 59, rolled up at 6 a.m., as he did daily, 47-year-old Dupree Pierre Barber fired at least five rounds into his former supervisor's Jeep Wrangler and fled, according to detectives.

The Wrangler drifted until the weight from Ebert's body, slumped on the brake, brought it to a stop in the middle of a park road. It idled there until another employee arrived for work and made the gruesome discovery.

It wasn't long before Barber's name surfaced in interviews with Ebert's co-workers, who raised concerns about his workplace behavior, said Sacramento County sheriff's spokesman Deputy Jason Ramos. Investigators' interest in Barber increased when deputies found his car abandoned nearby, Ramos said.

By Tuesday morning, detectives regarded Barber as a possible suspect, and he apparently knew it: He flagged down a West Sacramento police officer to say Sacramento County authorities were looking for him, Ramos said.

By afternoon, he had been booked into the Sacramento County jail on suspicion of murder. Sheriff's detectives allege he was retaliating for the loss of his job.

"We pretty much think it's directly attributable to that," Ramos said.

A records search turned up no criminal history for Barber in Sacramento County. The Bee's efforts to find his relatives Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Barber was living in an aging, two-story stucco apartment complex on Coloma Road in Rancho Cordova. One neighbor said he was shocked by the allegations but described Barber as anti-social.

"Everybody around here is pretty friendly, but this guy never looked up and met your eyes," said Al Sutherlin. "He was a loner."

The Cordova parks district encompasses 75 square miles with 38 parks, the largest of which is Hagan Community Park. As superintendent, Ebert oversaw districtwide maintenance.

Barber had been working for the maintenance unit since 2005, according to a lawsuit he would file later. His employment ended Jan. 12 when he and 17 other employees were laid off, said Doug Critchfield, the district's interim administrator. As at many other public agencies, the district was attempting to address a budget shortfall.

According to a lawsuit filed in 2009 against the parks district and several of its employees, including Ebert, Barber, who is African American, claimed he was harassed and passed over for promotion because of his race.

The suit alleged his work environment was hostile and that at one point in 2009, he took a 17-day medical leave "due to stress resulting from Defendants' allegedly discriminatory, harassing and retaliatory acts."

Among his claims was that Ebert regularly told the district's African American employees that "if you don't like it here, I will help you leave." Another employee, he alleged, called him "Buckwheat" and "my boy Driving Miss Daisy."

Attorneys for the parks district denied the allegations, and the parties settled in 2010. Details of that settlement were not clear Tuesday.

Jim Fortune, Ebert's brother-in-law, said Ebert had not relayed to his family any work-related concerns in recent weeks. He described the allegations of retaliation as "a complete and utter surprise."

"(Ebert) was very well-liked by everyone he worked with," said Fortune, 67.

Fortune said he had known Ebert for more than 40 years. Fortune's sister, Carol, and Ebert were sweethearts at Rio Americano High School and married shortly after graduating more than four decades ago, he said. The couple raised two children – a son and daughter, both grown and employees of the U.S. Forest Service – and have two grandchildren.

Fortune described his brother-in-law as a man who loved the outdoors. He and Carol enjoyed camping in their motor home, boating, swimming – and Disneyland, which they visited earlier this month.

Ebert dedicated his professional life to parks service, working first for the Sacramento County parks agency before moving to the Cordova district five years ago, Fortune said. By then, the couple had moved from Sacramento to Pollock Pines, where they traded city life for quiet acreage in the foothills.

His sister, he said, is overwhelmed by the loss of her partner and what to do about all the painful reminders of their life together: the barn they were about to build; the boat in the repair shop; that bullet-riddled Wrangler, just 6 months old.

"She doesn't want it back," her brother said. "She doesn't even want to see it."

"They were really happy together," he said.

Employees at the parks district were also grappling with the loss Tuesday. Rick Sloan, chairman of the district's governing board, described Ebert as a loving husband and father who "took pride in keeping our parks beautiful."

"My heart is so heavy with sympathy for the Ebert family," Sloan said. "I feel really sad for them … . I broke down in tears last night just thinking about his grandkids not having their grandpa."

Outside the district offices – closed Monday and Tuesday – Hagan Community Park had resumed its daily hum. Cyclists buzzed by on the American River Parkway, dogs romped in the "bark park" and Cordova High School students played basketball on nearby courts.

The only remnant of Monday's scene was shattered glass, still glittering in the roadway.

District offices were expected to reopen today with extra security. Grief counselors will be on hand.

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Call The Bee's Kim Minugh, (916) 321-1038. Bee researcher Pete Basofin contributed to this report.