Q: What are the details of a bizarre road rage incident perhaps five years ago along Highway 50 where one man was killed and another man committed suicide? - Anonymous, Carmichael
A: Donald Rodger Bell shot himself to death on May 20, 2001, near the roadside memorial on Highway 50 to the man he was accused of killing in a road-rage incident about three weeks earlier, The Bee reported.
Investigators said Bell, 52, of Elk Grove called 911 on his cell phone about 10 a.m. to tell police he intended to shoot himself. He asked them to relay a message to his wife, and then fired one shot to his head.
Bell had returned to the Hazel Avenue offramp to meet with an investigator working on his criminal defense, investigators said. He faced voluntary manslaughter charges in the shooting death of Timothy Michael Mann, 53, of Orangevale on May 6, 2001. Bell was out on bail.
The fight between Mann and Bell started just before 11:30 a.m. when both motorists were traveling east on Highway 50 near Bradshaw Road. Sheriff's officials said Bell, who was driving a small white pickup truck, pulled into traffic in front of Mann's four-door sedan.
The two exchanged angry words and gestures while continuing eastbound before exiting at Hazel Avenue. Mann pulled into the left-hand turn lane. Bell was behind him in his truck.
While they were sitting at the light waiting for it to change, Bell allegedly got out of the car and gestured to Mann. Mann left his car and the two men began arguing. Witnesses said Mann took a swing at Bell, who then shot Mann.
Mann's wife and their 28-year-old son looked on in horror, as did Bell's 15-year-old son, who was in the pickup.
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