A road rage shooting in LA leaves one dead and Interstate 5 is shut down for hours

LOS ANGELES – One person was killed and another injured in an apparent traffic shooting during rush hour in Southern California, authorities said Friday.

The shooting, reported just after 4 p.m. Thursday, closed the northbound lanes of Interstate 5, which runs through northeast Los Angeles, for several hours.

The California Highway Patrol, the state police agency, told a preliminary investigation that the two men suspected of being involved in the shooting were able to drive away.

The incident began with a gold Cadillac sedan and a dark SUV chasing each other, with the Cadillac eventually rear-ending an uninvolved car, CHP said. Two men were seen getting out of the SUV and opening fire on the Cadillac, shooting both the driver and passenger.

According to preliminary investigations, the dark SUV may have been a Dodge Durango.

The Cadillac then made a U-turn and entered the northbound lane of oncoming traffic to escape the shooters, colliding with several other cars, CHP said. The passenger died from his injuries at the scene of the accident, while the driver was taken to a hospital.

The passenger has not been identified and next of kin is pending notification.

Local television stations showed hundreds of drivers standing outside their cars and milling around while stuck on the highway. The northbound lanes didn’t reopen until around 1 a.m. Friday, causing traffic to back up for miles.