DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — It's been three months since a 40-year-old man was shot and killed as he exited I-285 onto I-675.
Daniel Booth's mom said her son had just left one job and jumped on the interstate as he was heading to the next on Oct. 11, 2022. But then, his life was taken.
"I don’t understand how someone can get up and do this and take a gun on the interstate and shoot from your car and into his car," Misty Keys said, Booth's mom. "This is broad daylight on an interstate."
The DeKalb County Police Department said the shooting happened just before 1:30 p.m. on that Tuesday. They received a 911 call that a vehicle wrecked into the concrete median. However, once officers got on scene they quickly realized there was much more going on than just a crash. DeKalb Police closed the interstate and homicide detectives were called out to the scene.
"During the course of our investigation, we uncovered a witness who actually had a dashcam and the video, and that provided us a glimpse of how the incident happened," said DeKalb Police Lt. David Schoeppner.
Schoeppner said Booth was shot in the head. He released video to 11Alive that showed the seconds leading up to the shooting on the interstate.
"The victim's vehicle was in the far left lane traveling and the suspect vehicle was behind. And it looked like the suspect vehicle had approached very closely to the rear of the victim's vehicle, possibly like they were upset that the victim wasn't going faster." Schoeppner said. "But once again, that's purely speculation. And then at one point, the victim's vehicle pulls off and then actually makes a move to exit on a 675. "
"And it's not clear from the video, but based on the evidence we have, it appears that the shooting happened at some point during that time. And then the vehicle veered back across 285 and hit the median wall," explained Schoeppner.
Schoeppner also pointed out in the video, "It’s real easy to miss. It looks like the victim throws a drink. I believe it was like a Styrofoam cup, or something, at this vehicle. Now whether or not that was enough to push him over the edge is hard to say."
Following the shooting, the suspect's vehicle -- described as a gray in color Nissan Altima -- disappeared into traffic.
It had a distinct decal on the back windshield that appeared to be a monogram of three initials but the exact lettering is not able to be seen due to the distance of the dash camera video and glare from the sun.
"What we're hoping for, what we would really like, is the person who did this to have a conscious of the come forward," Schoeppner said.
Police are also hoping someone else can recognize the car.
"If they would come forward and let us know who that person is, so we can find out and get to the bottom of exactly why this happened," explained Schoeppner.
While police continue to search for who killed Booth, his family is still trying to come to terms with the loss.
"He was my only sibling, my mother’s only son, my niece’s father, you know my family lost a lot," said Britney Hite, Booth's sister.
Booth was a veteran. His sister said he served in the Navy for eight years. He loved to cook and fix cars. He leaves behind not only his mom and sister, but also a 17-year-old daughter.
It was very tough ending to 2022 for this family. Booth's mom said not only did she lose her only son in October, but her husband died in December. She's now left grieving both losses and praying someone will come forward and give them some closure in the murder of her son.
Anyone who knows anything about this shooting or recognizes the car seen in the video can call the DeKalb County Police Department's Homicide Unit at 770-724-7850.