Matthew Jon Bohls told Gilbert police he was staring down the barrel of a .45-caliber Glock handgun following a road-rage incident on a busy town street, so he leaned out of his pickup with a .9mm pistol and opened fire.

The shooting occurred at about 5:20 p.m. April 9 at Williams Field Road and Market Street, where Mitchell Shane Fickes, 56, was left with fatal wounds to his left leg, torso and face.

After reviewing the case, the Maricopa County Attorney's Office declined to pursue charges against Bohls, 23.

"After an extensive review of the facts uncovered by the police investigation . . . there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction of Mr. Bohls, so no charges were formally filed," County Attorney spokesman Jerry Cobb said on Monday.

Attempts to contact Bohls or the victim's family were unsuccessful.

The shooting unfolded as several witnesses were stopped for the traffic light in eastbound lanes on Williams Field Road at Market Street, adjacent to a large shopping center and SanTan Village mall.

While motorists flooded Gilbert police with calls to 911 after hearing the shots and seeing Fickes fall, none interviewed by police actually saw Bohls pull the trigger, the police report states.

Bohls told investigators he apparently waited too long to turn his Dodge Ram pickup from San Tan Boulevard onto East Williams Field Road, according to a recently released Gilbert police report.

Bohls told police he was heading to a nearby Walmart, when Fickes, driving a Ford F-150 pickup, apparently began honking and making obscene gestures.

Bohls "was attempting to change lanes because he needed to go south on Market Street to get to Walmart," the report states. "Every time he attempted to change lanes, (Fickes) would deliberately speed up and try to cut off his vehicle."

Bohls said Fickes almost collided with his pickup so he gunned it and changed lanes in front of Fickes. Witnesses corroborated the statement, saying the pair appeared to be racing.

Both drivers stopped for a red light as they approached Williams Field Road and Market Street. Bohls told police he watched in his rearview mirror as Fickes exited his pickup and "appeared to be very angry," the report states. "Matthew said he thought to himself, 'This guy wants to start (expletive).'"

Bohls said he considered driving away, but he was boxed in by other vehicles.

Bohls grabbed his .9mm Glock handgun from a center console. As he opened his driver's door, he said he saw Fickes removing a handgun from his waistband.

"Matthew said he was looking down the barrel of Fickes' gun," the report states. "Matthew told me he retreated to his vehicle for a brief second because he thought, 'A round was going to come sailing into his head.'"

Fickes told Bohls, "You drop the gun" and raised his handgun toward Bohls' chest. Bohls stated he told Fickes "No, no, no" and began firing rapidly.

The entire incident occurred as Bohls continued to keep his right foot on the brake pedal of his pickup. Afterward, he got into the pickup and placed it into park.

A short time later, he was apprehended by an off-duty Gilbert police officer who happened to be in the area.

Bohls was visibly upset and told police he fired "because he pointed a gun at my face and I thought I was going to die. God, I (expletive) thought I was done. I thought I was going to die right there in my truck and my wife was never going to hear from me again."