Santa Rosa police search for gunman in Taco Bell drive-thru shooting

Santa Rosa police continued to search for a suspect Thursday in a shooting that left a man injured in the drive-thru line at a local Taco Bell.

Brad James Adams, 27, is accused of shooting the 22-year-old victim just after 12:01 a.m. Wednesday at the restaurant at Mendocino and Elliott avenues, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department.

The two men did not know each other, said Sgt. Chris Mahurin, a department spokesperson.

A SWAT team on Wednesday afternoon surrounded Adams’ Santa Rosa home in the 2100 block of Humboldt Street in hopes of taking him into custody, but he wasn’t home, police said.

All was calm on the street Thursday afternoon as neighbors recalled the activity that occurred nearly 24 hours earlier.

“My street looked like a war zone,” said one resident, Eric, who gave only his first name. “I had to wonder what happened to make police show up with their guns drawn.”

The shooting followed an argument between Adams and the victim, who were in separate vehicles at the Taco Bell drive-thru, Mahurin said.

Adams was waiting in line in his white Ford F-150 pickup truck when he initiated the argument with the victim, who was in the vehicle directly behind his, Mahurin said.

Police said it was unclear what the men said to each other. Adams flashed a handgun at the victim as they argued, according to Mahurin.

After he picked up his food from the drive-thru window, Adams parked his pickup in the Taco Bell parking lot, approached the victim’s vehicle, which was still in the drive-thru, and fired several rounds at the man.

The man was shot in his right arm, Mahurin said.

The victim called authorities and is expected to survive after being treated at a local hospital.

Adams had last been seen driving north on Mendocino.

Police later found the pickup north of the scene in the Mendocino Marketplace parking lot. A handgun was inside the vehicle but investigators did not find Adams.

The Sonoma County Alliance Community Engagement and Safety Rewards Fund is offering a reward up to $2,500 for information leading to Adams’ arrest.

Sonoma County Superior Court records show Adams has a history of felony and misdemeanor convictions dating back to at least 2016. Several were for drug-related offenses. A 2017 conviction involved evasion of police.

Adams pleaded no contest and was sentenced to probation in several cases.

Wednesday’s attempt to arrest Adams was at least the second time authorities have converged on his home in the past four years.

In April 2018, Adams was the subject of a probation search in which he locked himself and two dogs inside a bedroom for 40 minutes before surrendering to authorities, police said.

Eric, the neighbor, recalled that 2018 incident and said he was “disturbed” to see police activity return to his street for the same person.

“It was a repeat of events I could have done without,” he said.

Police urged anyone with information about Adams’ location to call them at 707-528-5222 or 707-543-3590. Adams should be considered armed and dangerous, police said.

Staff Writer Matt Pera contributed to this report.

You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @colin_atagi.