Driver Shot by Another Motorist

A San Bernardino man was shot in the head by another motorist Friday morning on a freeway interchange in Riverside, the fourth shooting in recent weeks on Southern California freeways.

Ricky Smith, 32, was headed west on the Moreno Valley Freeway about 2:30 a.m. when someone in the car beside him fired at least five shots. Smith’s sport utility vehicle slid into a guardrail on the connector road to northbound Interstate 215.

Smith was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where he was listed in serious condition, police said.

Passengers in two cars witnessed the shooting, and one car followed the shooter’s vehicle -- a dark red, burgundy or brown Chevy Monte Carlo carrying at least two people -- for about a mile. They exited and phoned for help. Witnesses told police the Monte Carlo was a newer model whose license plate begins with 4 and ends with 9.

“They didn’t see any big, protracted incident,” Riverside Police Sgt. Leon Phillips said, adding that investigators were unsure what prompted the shooting.

Smith’s window was rolled down, and at least five bullets struck his door. Bullet casings were scattered in a small area, about 75 feet, suggesting that the vehicles were traveling relatively slow, Phillips said.

Two motorists were shot and killed recently in separate instances on L.A.’s Harbor Freeway. In Orange County, a Fontana man was shot and killed March 12 while driving on the Costa Mesa Freeway. That also remains under investigation.