Santa Rosa Man Receives Life Sentence for 2022 Shooting at Mendocino Avenue Taco-Bell

Defendant Brad Adams, 29 years old of Santa Rosa, was sentenced today by Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Troye Shaffer following his August convictions for attempted murder and shooting at an occupied building. Per the terms of a plea agreement, Adams was sentenced to 11 years to life in state prison.

District Attorney Carla Rodriguez stated, “Mr. Adams terrorized and injured someone in in our community, and undoubtedly terrorized everyone else in the immediate vicinity.  Mr. Adams earned the indeterminate prison sentence through his brazen behavior and use of a firearm.”

The shooting occurred on May 4, 2022, at the Taco-Bell on Mendocino Avenue in Santa Rosa. The incident began when Adams challenged another person to a fistfight while waiting in the drive-through line. After making that initial verbal challenge, Adams got out of his truck and pointed a handgun equipped with a laser-sight at the victim. Adams then got back in his truck and drove towards the drive-through’s exit. However, Adams then got out of his truck again, and he told one of his passengers to drive the truck to the nearby Safeway store on Mendocino Avenue. Adams then hid behind a retaining wall across from the drive-through and waited until the victim was getting his food from the pick-up window. Adams then fired two shots from a semi-automatic pistol into the victim’s car, hitting the victim in the wrist. After the shooting, Adams fled to the nearby Safeway parking lot on Mendocino Avenue. There, Adams abandoned his truck and fled on foot. Officers later located a semi-automatic pistol inside Adams’ truck, and they also found additional ammunition, ecstasy, and cocaine. Adams was arrested by police the following day in Brisbane, California. At the time of the shooting, Adams was a convicted felon and prohibited from owning firearms.

The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Robert Rasp and investigated by the Santa Rosa Police Department.