The man found guilty in the shooting death of former USC running back Joe McKnight has been sentenced, the Los Angeles Times is reporting.
According to the Times, 56-year-old Ronald Gasser was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison. He had been convicted of manslaughter after originally being indicted on one count of second-degree murder.
Gasser’s attorneys had argued that their client acted in self-defense in what was described as a road-rage incident in New Orleans in December of 2016.
From the Times’ report:... McKnight walked up to his car following a 5-mile confrontation that began on a bridge spanning the Mississippi River in New Orleans and ended with gunfire in neighboring Jefferson Parish.
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Witnesses at the trial said McKnight had been weaving in and out of traffic at high speed before the shooting. Prosecutors acknowledged to the jury that he was, in the words of Assistant Dist. Atty. Seth Shute, “driving like a jerk.” But they argued that Gasser escalated the conflict, following McKnight down an exit that he would not ordinarily have taken moments before the shooting.
Shute acknowledged that McKnight had a hand on the open, passenger side window of Gasser’s car before he was shot. But he said physical evidence proved Gasser lied during extensive police questioning when he claimed McKnight lunged at him.McKnight, who was 28 when he was killed, was a highly-touted five-star recruit who signed with USC in 2007. He finished his injury-plagued collegiate career with 2,213 yards and 13 touchdowns prior to leaving the Trojans early for the NFL following the 2009 season.