DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A man has been convicted in a deadly drive-by shooting that unfolded on Valentine's Day in 2021.
Jurors returned a guilty verdict against 39-year-old Jamaar Bracey Thursday. He was found guilty of felony and malice murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Prosecutors connected Bracey to the case in 2021 after DeKalb County authorities found an overturned car in an embankment along Warriors Path on the afternoon of Feb. 14. Rescuers identified the driver as 31-year-old Rodney Evans; he had suffered a gunshot wound to the head, they said.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was treated for the injury. He died on June 3, 2021, according to authorities.
Meantime, investigators worked to piece together evidence found at the scene and find the person who pulled the trigger.
Investigators found four bullet casings and shattered glass on the road. They also took into account that Evans' car had three of its four windows broken and appeared to have been shot at, according to prosecutors. Authorities learned that Evans had been involved "in a tumultuous relationship with a woman who lived on Waldrop Place," a release from the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office read.
The woman lived half a mile away from the crash scene, evidence revealed.
She had a protective order against Evans. According to prosecutors, she told police she heard an aggressive knock at the door of her home around two hours before the crash. She also noted that she had several missed texts and calls from Evans. He left and returned later, which prompted her to call her partner, Bracey, to come back home "because she was scared and had left her gun in his car," according to the DA's office.
When she called Bracey again to return home, he told her that he had shot at Evans "but did not believe he had hit him," prosecutors said.
Bracey claimed to prosecutors that he shot at Evans because Evans had rolled down his window as their cars crossed paths. The woman, according to attorneys, argued with Bracey about opening fire with their daughter in the car.
Law enforcement arrested Bracey in North Carolina on March 10, 2021, according to the DA's office, and he was extradited to the DeKalb County Jail.
He has since been sentenced to life without parole plus 15 years to serve in confinement. Bracey is already serving a sentence of life without parole plus five years for a fatal shooting in Cobb County in January 2021. His sentences will run consecutively, according to the DA's office.
