missing football player
Johnson never got to see a college field, never got his chance at a pro career. [1]
AP - This is an undated photo showing Billey Joe Johnson, in Biloxi, Miss. [2]
Last December, the black teen’s future ended with a shotgun blast on a rural stretch of roadway after he was pulled over by a white law enforcement officer. [1]
James O’Neal and Officer Stuart Fairchild arrived at the scene, Johnson was lying on the ground outside of the driver’s side door with a shotgun on top of him, the barrel pointing toward his head. [2]
‘ To build the breathtaking speed he would need to run out of his southeastern Mississippi hometown and into the NFL, George County High School junior Billey Joe Johnson used to race against his horse through the woods. [3]
Alarmed, the girl’s mother, Esther L. Parker, called police to report an attempted break-in, and two officers responded. [...] In his three-year high school career, the 5′11, 215-pound running back rushed for more than 4,000 yards, and was clocked at 4.3 seconds in the 40-yard dash. [...] Police say before leaving for the hunting trip, Johnson drove to the home of his on-again, off-again girlfriend about 15 miles away. [...] There are pictures of Billey Joe in his uniform, trophies, a floral arrangement from his funeral and a framed form letter from former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville. [...] Colleges noticed: He’d received some 200 letters from places like Auburn, Duke, Mississippi State and Florida State. [...] There also are inconsistencies in authorities’ account, according to Jerome Carter, the attorney representing Johnson’s family. [1]
A grand jury is meeting in Mississippi this week to consider the case after the NAACP raised questions about how it was handled. [2]
Police contend that Johnson shot himself, but the teen’s family says he had too much to live for to die. [...] Friends have suggested the shooting was somehow an accident, that Johnson might have panicked when an officer pulled him over because he had a gun in his pickup truck and accidentally fired it while trying to move it. [1]
Carter says he hasn’t found anything that indicates wrongdoing on the part of law officers. [2]
Sources:
[1] FOXNews.com - Was Miss. football player’s death a suicide? - Local News …
[2] Was Miss. football player’s death a suicide?
[3] Was Miss. football player’s death a suicide? : Sports : KTVO3