A jury on Tuesday found a Bellwood man guilty of using his Chevy Tahoe SUV to intentionally run down a bicyclist in 1999 in a fit of road rage.

As the verdict was read to a packed courtroom after two days of deliberations, the family of Carnell Fitzpatrick wailed and cried out. Fitzpatrick, 31, could face up to 60 years in prison after the jury found him guilty of first-degree murder.

Tom McBride, 26, was killed on April 26, 1999, as he rode his bicycle from his Oak Park home to his job in the Loop as a bicycle messenger.

Prosecutors argued that Fitzpatrick intentionally mowed down McBride, while defense lawyers argued the death was an accident.

''When you have a 3-ton vehicle and maybe a 20-pound bicycle there is no even match, it's very skewed,'' Assistant Cook County State's Attorney Lynda Peters said. ''The message that is sent by this verdict is that bicycles have the right to be out there. Tom McBride had the right to be on that road.'' She said it was the first vehicle-bike road rage case to be tried in Cook County.

Prosecutors said Fitzpatrick ran into McBride after the cyclist slapped his hand on the hood of the SUV and swore at Fitzpatrick who had nearly hit him as they traveled along the 5300 block of West Washington.

A key witness told police and a grand jury that he saw Fitzpatrick nearly hit McBride with his truck and then drive after him. Jerry Carter III, however, recanted his testimony during the trial when it was revealed that he had been threatened for speaking out.

Prosecutors then presented Carter's grand jury testimony and statements he made to police on the day McBride died.

Jurors said that during their deliberations they compared Fitzpatrick's truck to a weapon.

''We didn't believe Carnell wanted to murder him but he made a decision to go after him by his actions,'' said a juror, who asked that his name not be used.

During the nearly 16 hours of deliberations, jurors grappled with possibly convicting Fitzpatrick of reckless homicide, a lesser offense.

They also said Carter's first statements to police and the grand jury were more believable than his recantation and that witness testimony by two other men backed up Carter's initial claims.

''We felt something was up,'' a juror said.

Fitzpatrick's family and friends were too upset to discuss the verdict.

''This is the wrong time to ask someone when their son has been convicted of murder,'' a family member said.

But McBride's family applauded assistant state's attorneys Patrick Kelly and Peters, who tried the case.

''The prosecutors did a great job, we are grateful to them,'' McBride's mother Mary Ellen said.

Nearly a half dozen of McBride's fellow bike messengers and other bicyclists rode to the courthouse every day of the weeklong trial.

The verdict should send a message that cars must be more careful of bicyclists' rights on the road, said George Christensen, a bike messenger. He and McBride worked for the same company for nearly seven years.

''It's nice to have this on the record, it's assurance that the law is on our side,'' Christensen said. ''Vehicles are murder weapons. Had he used a gun it would have been more clear cut.''

While McBride may have exacerbated the confrontation when he swore at Fitzpatrick and hit his truck, it's something that bicycle messengers grapple with every day. Along with bags and helmets many carry repellent for protection against drivers, he said.

''When you're nearly killed out there, it's hard to let that pass,'' he said as he broke down in tears. ''The toughest day was the day after he was killed. He really liked being a messenger, I could feel his presence that day.''