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Joe McKnight Shooter Not Charged, Released From Jail — Will Ronald Gasser Be Charged For The Death Of Former NFL Running Back?

By Shaunee Flowers
Published on: 07:39 PST, Dec 2, 2016

New Orleans is in mourning after the loss of former NFL star Joe McKnight in an alleged road rage shooting on Thursday. The man who shot McKnight, Ronald Gasser, was released from jail less than 24 hours later and has not been charged in the shooting. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Department has made it clear that Gasser “definitely” shot Joe McKnight but now there are questions about the circumstances leading up to the shooting.

Despite the overnight release of the shooting suspect and the lack of charges, the case is still open, and Ronald Gasser could still be charged for the shooting death of Joe McKnight. If that were to happen, either the grand jury or the district attorney would determine if charges should be filed against Gasser. So far, no details have been given regarding why Gasser was released with no charges.

Ronald Gasser is accused of shooting former NFL running back Joe McKnight around 2:45 p.m. on Thursday, according to the Times-Picayune. The apparent road rage incident occurred at the intersection of Behrman Highway and Holmes Boulevard in Terrytown, a suburb of New Orleans located just five miles away on the West Bank of the Mississippi river.

A witness to the shooting told the Times-Picayune that she saw McKnight and Gasser at the intersection prior to the shooting. The woman, who declined to give her name, says she saw Gasser yelling at McKnight and that it looked like the former football star was trying to apologize. She said that she saw Gasser shoot McKnight “more than once.”

She said that Gasser then stood over Joe McKnight and said, “I told you don’t you f**k with me.”

Then, the witness said that Gasser shot McKnight one more time while he was already down on the ground. Joe McKnight did not have a gun in his possession, according to law enforcement, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Upon hearing that Joe McKnight’s shooter was not only not charged but also released from custody just hours after the road rage killing, many fans of the former NFL star took to social media in anger. Many New Orleans residents, as well as a few NFL stars, have questioned the release of Ronald Gasser and want to know what is going on with the investigation into the alleged road rage incident.

Given the details that have already been released regarding the shooting death of Joe McKnight, it’s hard for some to understand why Ronald Gasser is not in custody and has not been charged at all in the road rage incident. Jefferson Paris Sheriff Newell Normand told reporters during a press conference that Gasser is “not going anywhere” while citing that the shooter stayed at the scene and was cooperative with police. Additionally, Gasser turned over his weapons to police prior to being taken into custody. Currently, there are questions about whether Gasser was even licensed to carry concealed weapons, which could lead to even more charges.

[Featured Image by Tom Gannam/AP Images]

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