Six-time NBA All-Star charged in connection with mall shooting

Shawn Kemp, a former Seattle SuperSonics player and six-time NBA All-Star, was reportedly charged with assault in connection with a mall shooting.

Kemp was charged with one count of first-degree assault by the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office after an incident in March in which shots were fired at the Tacoma Mall, according to the local News Tribune. The site reported that Kemp was arrested and then released, and that he will be arraigned May 4.

The local news outlet cited video evidence and public court records to establish a timeline of the altercation:

The video showed Kemp arriving in a Porsche and parking a few stalls away from a Toyota 4Runner.
Surveillance videos from numerous sources showed Kemp walking toward the 4Runner while carrying a backpack.
“Kemp was very animated,” charging papers state. The court records don’t state if Kemp or occupants of the other vehicle then fired a round. But a bullet hole was found in the roof of a third, uninvolved vehicle.
The driver of the 4Runner then moved the vehicle with his driver side door open, court records show. The door became lodged against an adjacent car. Kemp then moved closer and fired a round into the hood of the 4Runner. Smoke soon began to rise from the front of that vehicle.

Kemp reportedly claims that he was defending himself by returning fire after confronting individuals at the mall who he thought had stolen his phone.

ALSO IN THE NEWS: Lauren Boebert’s son a no-show for scheduled court appearance over crash that injured friend