Man held in McKnight shooting

RONALD Gasser, who admitted to the police that he had shot and killed former NFL player Joe McKnight in Louisiana, was arrested on Monday and charged with manslaughter – four days after the authorities faced widespread criticism for initially freeing him.

The death of McKnight, 28, a former New York Jets running back who played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League, after what the authorities described as a “road rage” confrontation has captured wide attention amid a national debate about shootings and race. Gasser is white, and McKnight was black.

Gasser was charged after investigators conducted more than 160 interviews and spoke to Gasser for more than 12 hours, Sheriff Newell Normand of Jefferson Parish said on Tuesday in an expletive-laden news conference in which he defended the authorities’ actions.

The sheriff, bristling over suggestions officials had been slow-footed and had handled the case differently because of the race of the two men, read aloud obscene internet comments that had been directed at elected officials after Gasser’s release.

He repeated two racial slurs for African-Americans, an anti-gay slur and other crude language, and twice banged his fist on the lectern, chastising critics for what he said was a premature demand for justice.

“For those who have criticised the men and women of this organisation and the strategy decisions that we made relative to that – tough, I don’t care,” he said. “Because what I know is I can put my head on the pillow every night knowing that we’ve done the right thing for the right reasons.”

The sheriff also appeared to insinuate that the victim shared blame for the violent outcome, saying: “Two people engaged in bad behaviour that day. Why? I don’t know, but they did.”

The sheriff said the charges against Gasser would be submitted to the district attorney.

McKnight was shot three times at about 2:45pm last Thursday in Terry- town, Louisiana, about 5 miles southeast of New Orleans.

Normand said the confrontation began after both drivers were driving erratically, cutting each other off and zipping in front of each other, according to Gasser and witnesses.

Gasser said he became irate and engaged in a “verbal altercation” with the football player. When they stopped next to each other at a red light, McKnight got out of his car and approached Gasser’s car window. Gasser then pulled out a handgun from between his seat and the console and shot McKnight, Normand said.

Gasser told the police he had feared McKnight, but witnesses disputed elements of his account, Normand said.

Possible NFL return

Normand said that last Thursday night, investigators had only a statement from Gasser and no corroborating or contradictory statements from witnesses.

A key witness did not come forward until Saturday, he said, and officials were still trying to find others. Charg- ing Gasser on Thursday would have compromised the ability to prosecute him. Gasser did not have a lawyer at the time, he said.

McKnight had been in contact with the Minnesota Vikings about a possible NFL comeback and was working at a mental health facility, Jonathan McKnight, his brother, told WGNO, a local TV station.

Gasser is the owner of a telecommunications firm and a real estate business, according to the New Orleans Advocate.

In February 2006, he was charged with simple battery after a confrontation with another driver that began at the same intersection in Louisiana where McKnight was shot.

A 51-year-old man had called 911 to report that a man behind the wheel of a red pick-up was driving unsafely. The man turned out to be Gasser, and a “verbal altercation” ensued. Gasser followed the man to a service station, where Gasser “confronted him and began to strike him with a closed fist several times”, the police said. The charge was later dismissed.