'I thought I was going to die': Road rage case on I-285 leads to 2 arrests

EAST POINT, Ga. - East Point police say you should never pull out a weapon to resolve a traffic dispute, but that is what police say people in both cars did over the weekend. The road rage shooting happened on I-285 near Washington Road on Saturday.

Driver Amari Janeau and passenger Gerimiah Bates say they feared for their lives when they cut off another driver while on the road this past Saturday.

"It's like six bullet holes in my car," Janeau told FOX 5. "He flashed his gun at us and a passenger that was in the back seat said he got his gun pointed at her so when the lanes open, I just sped off."

"I said keep going he's still on us still on it's still following then that's when we heard the first gunshot it went through the back window or where the female passenger was sitting, and then it hit me in the back of the head I know something hot hit me in the back of the head," Bates said. "I honestly thought I was going to die."

Both drivers pulled over at the BP gas station on Cascade Road and East Point Police started sorting things out. EMS treated Bates at the scene, and he was then transferred to the hospital.  But according to the police report, the other driver who told them he was a retired Atlanta Police officer. He indicated the young men pursued him and pulled out a gun threatening him.

Bates insists he only shot in self-defense.

"He hit me in the back of the head, I know something hot hit me in the back of the head so there I ducked down and then that's when I grabbed my gun and started returning fire," he said.

Police have charged both Bates and the retired officer with firing a weapon in a public place.

Meanwhile, Bates and Janeau say this was a close call, and they are grateful they survived the violence.