ROAD RAGE INCIDENT PRECEDES FATAL CRASH, AUTHORITIES SAY.

Byline: Josh Kleinbaum Staff Writer

WINNETKA - Minutes after being involved in a road-rage incident, a suspected drunk driver struck and killed a motorcyclist while attempting to make a U-turn on Corbin Avenue, officials said Monday.

Robert Lee Jonte, 42, was killed about 7:30 p.m. Sunday when his Honda dirt bike was hit by a northbound Mercedes-Benz that tried to make a U-turn near the intersection of Strathern Street, Valley Traffic Officer Toni Wolfe said.

Alejandro Pineda, 40, of Encino was arrested on suspicion of murder. He was being held at the jail in Van Nuys in lieu of more than $1 million bail, she said.

Pineda reportedly had been involved in a road rage incident minutes before the crash, officials said.

After a dispute over speed or a lane change, he tried to follow another car to get its license-plate number. When he finished following the other motorist he attempted the U-turn and struck Jonte, officials said.

``Road rage seems to cause a lot more trouble than it's worth these days,'' Wolfe said. ``The road rage has no bearing on the traffic accident itself, though. The turn itself was illegal, and the fact that he was intoxicated I'm sure has a lot of bearing on it.''

Initial tests showed that Pineda's blood-alcohol content was above the legal limit of .08 percent, Wolfe said.

Josh Kleinbaum, [phone]

josh.kleinbaum(at)dailynews.com