Terry Edward Majan was a 38-year-old male who passed away on March 18, 2008, in Santa Maria, California. Born on March 9, 1970, at Fort Ord, California, Terry Majan was the son of Juan and Kathy Majan. He was interred on March 29, 2008, at Holy Cross Cemetery in Santa Cruz, California.
On that afternoon of March 18, 2008, a fatal shooting took place at Black Road Auto, an automobile salvage yard located on the western edge of Santa Maria.
At approximately 4 p.m., a gunman entered the business armed with a semi-automatic firearm and shot multiple individuals at close range. Among those killed was Terry Edward Majan, a 37-year-old male employee at the yard, who suffered fatal gunshot injuries in the onslaught.
The suspect in the incident was identified as Lee Isaac Bedwell Leeds, a 31-year-old male from Santa Maria. He was the son of Robert Leeds, the 66-year-old owner of Black Road Auto, who was also among the victims. After fatally shooting his father, Leeds proceeded to fire on others present—Terry Edward Majan, a 33-year-old male customer, Ricardo Cardenas Leal, and another employee in their first week. The attack was described by law enforcement as 'very deliberate,' with the suspect likely reloading at least once during the course of the incident. A total of 17 shots were reportedly fired.
Law enforcement sources indicated that Leeds appeared to commit the act without provocation. Witnesses described how he walked into the yard, fired at his father, then walked through the area shooting others. The unfolding scene caused panic among customers, many of whom fled as the shooting continued. Despite the chaos, officers were eventually able to apprehend Leeds after he attempted to flee by climbing over a fence. As he tried to escape, he discarded the handgun, which was later recovered.
Lee Isaac Bedwell Leeds was arrested on suspicion of murder and booked into Santa Barbara County jail, held without bail. He was charged with four counts of murder, including enhancements that elevated potential sentencing to death or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The motive behind the killings remained unclear. Leeds had refused to speak with investigators, and with the loss of four potential witnesses, police struggled to understand why certain individuals were targeted; the shootings seemed to lack a clear or consistent pattern.
In the aftermath, Leeds' defense noted that he suffered from serious mental illness—specifically, paranoid schizophrenia—and that he had recently changed medications two weeks before the shooting, during which time his condition reportedly deteriorated. His family stated he had been under psychiatric care most of his life. Despite this, a jury later found him legally sane at the time of the killings. Ultimately, years after the crime, he was convicted and sentenced to a total term of 100 years to life in prison, followed by life without parole on each of the four counts of first-degree murder.
