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HARVEY, La. -- A road rage incident possibly sparked by a driver cutting off another on a nearby bridge spiraled into a shooting that left an ex-NFL player dead, authorities said, amid criticism the shooter was allowed to go free.Joe McKnight, 28, was shot Thursday afternoon in Terrytown, across the Mississippi River from New Orleans. Authorities identified Ronald Gasser, 54, as the shooter and released him overnight.At a news conference Friday, Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand said the altercation started on a nearby bridge and proceeded into the New Orleans suburb.Witnesses reported hearing rapid gunfire after the two men were in a heated argument.Normand said Gasser shot McKnight three times from inside his car while McKnight stood outside and then gave his handgun to deputies when they arrived at the scene soon afterward. No weapon was found on or near McKnights body, authorities said.No charges have been filed, and some have criticized the sheriff for releasing Gasser.Morris Reed Sr., president of the New Orleans branch of the NAACP, was part of a small group of protesters outside the sheriffs office Friday. He said they would ask the Department of Justice to open an independent investigation into the shooting.Until someone is charged with a crime, justice is not served, he said on local media.Dozens of people gathered at the scene of the shooting Friday night, holding hands in prayer and lighting candles. One woman held a sign saying This is murder.Normand defended his handling of the case, saying they would investigate thoroughly. Speaking of Gassers release, the sheriff said the state has certain statutes that provide a defense to certain crimes but did not go into detail.Normand rejected accounts in local media speculating about the shooting. He said theres no video of the incident and Gasser did not stand over McKnight, firing. Coroner Gerry Cvitanovich said McKnights three wounds were not consistent with being shot from above.When asked whether the states stand your ground law will play a role, Normand said: It is one of the issues that looms on the horizon, before saying he didnt want to give an opinion.Stand your ground laws give people wide latitude to use deadly force when they believe they are in danger. Dane Ciolino, a Loyola University law professor in New Orleans, says under such laws people engaged in lawful activity in a place where they have a lawful right to be, dont have to retreat.He said it ... boils down to whether the killing is necessary for this man to save his life.But news that Gasser has been involved in a similar altercation -- at the same intersection -- with a driver a decade ago will likely raise further questions about who was the aggressor.Normand said in a press release late Friday that in February 2006, a man observed a truck driving erratically and called a number on the truck, speaking to a man later identified as Gasser.Gasser and the man got into a fight on the phone and then Gasser followed the man to a service station, confronted him and hit him several times. Gasser drove away and the victim called 911.Investigators found Gasser and issued a misdemeanor summons for simple battery, which was later dismissed. Authorities said they are trying to determine why it was dismissed.McKnights grandmother, Barbara Franklin, said relatives are trying to find out our own selves just what happened and why Gasser was released.He might be released now, but God is going to bring about justice in it, she said by phone.McKnights death was eerily similar to that of former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith who was killed last April in a shooting sparked by a traffic altercation.The man accused of shooting Smith goes on trial Monday in New Orleans. The discrepancy in how the two shooters were treated stood out for Kawanee Holmes, of Gretna, Louisiana who came to the intersection where McKnight was shot to leave balloons and flowers with a friend.It wasnt justified what he did. He could have defused the situation by driving away, Holmes said.McKnight is black and Gasser is white, authorities said. Normand denied race played a role, pointing out that the man who raised McKnight used to be a sheriffs deputy and many people in the department are close to his family.McKnight played three seasons for the New York Jets and one with the Kansas City Chiefs. He spent this season in the Canadian Football League. He was considered the nations No. 1 running back recruit when he came out of Louisiana in 2006 and signed with the University of Southern California.Former teammates in New York remembered McKnight fondly.I enjoyed the time when he was here and getting to know him as a person. I think its going to hurt his son the most and thats what is really bothering me -- knowing that a kid will have to grow up without his dad, said Muhammad Wilkerson.The Jets plan a moment of silence before Mondays game to honor McKnight.Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll coached McKnight at USC and said he had talked with McKnight just three weeks ago in California.He had a great heart, he was a great kid, he was fun to be around, fun loving but you just knew he had a lot of stuff to overcome and he was making it, Carroll said. Were going to miss him greatly, Carroll said.---Associated Press reporters Jeff Amy in Jackson, Mississippi, Dennis Waszak Jr. in Florham Park, New Jersey, and Tim Booth contributed to this report.---Follow Rebecca Santana on Twitter (at)ruskygal. Justin Lawler Jersey . James, who turned 29 on Monday, injured his groin Friday during the Heats overtime loss at Sacramento. 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The 21-year-old has three goals, four assists and a plus-5 rating in 24 games with the American Hockey Leagues Oklahoma City Barons this season. Micah Kiser Jersey . In taking its goal tally to 99 in all competitions already this season, City delivered another demonstration of its lethal firepower at Etihad Stadium to set up a fourth-round match at home to another second-tier team -- Watford. BATON ROUGE, La. -- Diagnosed with cancer,?LSUs?live tiger mascot, Mike VI, wont take the field during home football games this?season but will remain in his habitat instead.The university, in a news release Tuesday, said that in light of Mikes recent terminal cancer diagnosis, no attempt will be made to load him into his trailer. Instead, officials say hell be let out into his outdoor habitat early on game day so Tigers fans can see and visit with him throughout the day.LSU understands that the tradition of having Mike on the field on game day is important; however, Mikes health, safety and well-being are always our top priority, the statement said.In June, Mike receiived stereotactic radiotherapy?treatment for spindle cell sarcoma -- a lemon-sized swelling that had nearly closed one of his eyes -- at the Mary Bird Perkins-Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Center in Baton Rouge.ddddddddddddSince the treatment, officials say the tumor has shrunk and his attitude, weight and appetite are normal. Still, they say the radiation-resistant cells in the tumor remaining in the tumor will resume growth and Mike remains terminally ill, with