Victim’s widow asks Placer judge to deny bail in Rocklin road rage murder case
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Placer judge joined cases of a father and his son accused in a fatal road rage.
- Blake Rakela remains jailed without bail; judge cites ongoing public safety risk.
- Trial date pending; defense plans motion to challenge grand jury indictment.
A father and his adult son accused in a deadly Rocklin road rage confrontation appeared together for the first time Monday in Placer Superior Court two months after a criminal grand jury indicted them.
Anthony David Rakela Jr., 60, and his son, Blake Anthony Rakela, 20, are accused in the March 15 incident that ended with the death of Jeremy Styles, 55. A prosecutor has said in court that Blake Rakela used a large metal wrench to hit Styles, and his father assisted him in committing the crime.
Linda Parisi, Blake Rakela’s defense attorney, again asked the judge to set bail for her client and allow him the chance to reunite with his family while the criminal case is litigated in court. She argued that Blake Rakela acted in self-defense and was protecting his girlfriend and his father who were both there when Styles threatened them while holding a tire iron.
The attorney told the judge that the Rakelas have no criminal record, and her client immediately returned to face his charges after a criminal grand jury indicted him and his father.
“(Blake Rakela) does not pose a public safety risk,” Parisi said in court Monday.
Carla Combe, Styles’ widow, asked the judge to not grant bail for Blake Rakela, the man she says killed her husband and took him away from her and their three children over a traffic incident.
“Our sense of safety and security has been shattered,” Combe said during Monday’s hearing. “And our nightmare continues.”
The accused father was released on bail hours after authorities arrested him and his son May 15. His son has remained in custody at the Placer County Jail. At a hearing last month, Judge Jeffrey Penney said Blake Rakela would pose a threat to the public if he were to be released from jail and ordered that he remain ineligible for bail.
Blake Rakela has been charged with murder along with an enhancement that alleges he used a deadly weapon (the metal wrench) in the crime. Court records show Anthony Rakela faces two felony charges: assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm and assault with a deadly weapon with force likely to cause great bodily injury.
The Rakelas, of Rocklin, have both pleaded not guilty to the charges they face. The father’s arraignment hearing was held about a months after his son’s arraignment.
Road rage confrontation
Styles died in the incident reported about 8:45 p.m. March 15 at the intersection of Whitney Ranch Parkway and Whitney Oaks Drive in a residential neighborhood just southwest of McCormick Park.
At last month’s bail review hearing for Blake Rakela, his defense attorney and the prosecutor revealed details about how the road rage confrontation unfolded.
Deputy District Attorney David Tellman told the judge that Blake Rakela was wielding “a very large wrench” when he attacked Styles.
“The defendant takes multiple swings with that wrench, ultimately killing him with a baseball-style swing to the head,” Tellman said in court. “Anyone who would kill somebody with a wrench over a traffic incident poses a risk to the public.”
Parisi argued that Styles got out of his vehicle with a tire iron and used it to hit her client’s vehicle, threatening to injure him.
“It happened because (Styles) is the one who got out of the car first, introduced not only physical confrontation, but physical threats,” Parisi told the judge. “(Rakela) gets out of the car with the wrench because (Styles) has gotten out of his car with a tire iron.”
Judge hears new information
On Monday, the defense attorney told the judge they had new information from the closed-door grand jury proceedings that should make the court reconsider setting bail for her client.
Parisi argued that Styles has been involved in two previous road rage incidents, including one where he assaulted an elderly man and a 2008 incident in which Styles reportedly held a machete while attacking someone else.
The attorney said authorities did not file criminal charges in the 2008 incident. She also said tests showed a presumptive positive results of cocaine in Styles’ system at the time of the March Rocklin road rage confrontation.
Parisi argued that someone who knew Styles said he had a history of having “a volatile temper.” She said it was Styles who introduced a weapon (the tire iron) into the confrontation.
The prosecutor told the judge that these were the same arguments made in last month’s bail review hearing. Tellman argued that maybe the defense attorney’s arguments would be relevant, but the defendant’s girlfriend recorded her boyfriend’s actions on video.
Tellman said Blake Rakela followed Styles’ vehicle for a quarter-mile, provoking Styles into a fight and luring him to an intersection where Anthony Rakela was waiting. The prosecutor said Blake Rakela swung the large wrench at Styles who was on the ground and being restrained by his father.
At the conclusion of Monday’s hearing, Penney said he considered the new information submitted and the attorneys’ arguments. The judge said Blake Rakela continues to pose a danger to the public if he was released and ordered that he remain ineligible for bail.
Defense will challenge indictment
The father and son appeared in court Monday morning for the judge to formally join their criminal cases and determine what’s the next step.
The grand jury indictment means the criminal case against the Rakelas skips the preliminary hearing phase and moves straight to trial. The trial has not yet been scheduled.
Penney scheduled the Rakelas to return Aug. 25 for the court to schedule a hearing for the defense to file a motion that will challenge the indictment.
