Former New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs running back Joe McKnight was killed this past December during a road rage incident in Louisiana.
The man accused of killing McKnight, Ronald Gasser, will now stand trial for second degree murder. The trial itself will start in August (via Nola.com).
While there’s still a lot of questions about the incident, the defense plans to argue that Gasser acted in self defense. Remember, McKnight had steroids and marijuana in his system at the time of autopsy. Louisiana is a stand-your-ground state, meaning that self defense could definitely come into play here.
Meanwhile, the prosecution will argue that this is a simple case of road rage, in which Gasser tracked McKnight down following an incident. Gasser then shot McKnight from the confines of his own car. He remained at the scene until authorities arrived.
McKnight, who was 28 at the time of death, played four seasons in the NFL after being selected by the Jets in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft out of USC.