McNair's Death Ruled a Homicide

Tenn. Police Have Reached No Conclusion on Death of Woman Found with Former NFL Star

(AP)  Last Updated 4:27 p.m. ET.

Former American football player Steve McNair's shooting death was a homicide, police said Sunday, but authorities stopped short of saying it was a murder-suicide committed by the 20-year-old girlfriend found dead by his side.

McNair, 36, was shot four times, twice in the head, by a semiautomatic pistol, Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said. The woman, Sahel Kazemi, was killed by a single gunshot wound and the pistol was found under her body, Aaron said.

Aaron said the two had been in a "dating relationship for past several months."

Asked if the deaths could have caused by a lover's quarrel, Aaron said, "That's a very important part of the investigation as we work to ultimately classify Miss Kazemi's death."

Police said they need to do more interviews with friends of Kazemi and McNair before they rule on whether her death was a suicide, Aaron said.

McNair, a four-time Pro Bowl selection, was married with four children. He and Kazemi were found dead Saturday afternoon at a Nashville condominium he shared with a friend, and police said Sunday that it appears the two died in the early morning.

Police earlier said they weren't looking for any suspects and do not believe McNair's wife was involved. Mechelle McNair, mother of two of his four sons, was expected to collect her husband's belongings from authorities. Funeral arrangements were not expected to be finalized until Monday afternoon at the earliest.

"She's still very upset, very distraught," agent Bus Cook said.

McNair led the famous Tennessee Titans' drive that came a yard short of forcing overtime in the 2000 Super Bowl, before the Titans traded him to the Baltimore Ravens in 2006. "On the field, there isn't a player that was as tough as him," the Ravens' Derrick Mason said.

McNair retired last year and had recently opened a restaurant in Nashville, where he shared a condo with a friend.

A man who answered the door at a house in Florida said it was the home of Kazemi's family, but said her relatives did not want to comment.

"We don't have anything to say, please leave us alone," he said.

A Nashville neighbor saw McNair, 36, at Kazemi's Nashville apartment so often — two to three times a week — that she thought McNair had moved in. McNair never tried to hide his presence but kept to himself.

Neighbor Reagan Howard said Kazemi often was dropped off in the early morning hours by a limousine and upgraded recently from her Kia to a Cadillac Escalade.

"It was pretty obvious that she was taken with him," Howard said.

McNair and Kazemi had been together just two days earlier, when she was pulled over driving a 2007 Escalade registered to her and McNair. She was arrested on a DUI charges, and he was allowed to leave in a taxi.

The bodies were discovered by McNair's longtime friend, Wayne Neeley, who rents the condo in the upscale Rutledge Hill neighborhood with McNair.

Neeley then called Robert Gaddy, who had been friends with McNair since they played at Alcorn State. Gaddy alerted authorities.

"People have certain things that they do in life," Gaddy told The Associated Press on Sunday. "We don't need to look on the situation at this time (but) on the fact we just lost a great member of society."

Cook said he was not aware that McNair was seeing Kazemi, a woman whose name the agent learned about through reports of the shooting.

"It doesn't make any sense. I don't know what to say," Cook said.

Police said a witness saw McNair arrive at the condo early Saturday and that Kazemi's vehicle was already there. The condominium is located within walking distance of an area filled with restaurants and nightspots, a few blocks from the Cumberland River and within view of the Titans' stadium.

Fred McNair, Steve McNair's oldest brother, said some family members would likely travel to Nashville on Monday to consult with Mechelle.

"It's still kind of hard to believe," Fred McNair said. "He was the greatest person in the world. He gave back to the community. He loved kids and he wanted to be a role model to kids."

McNair and his wife split their time between Nashville and their farm in Mount Olive, Mississippi, according to a statement from the Titans.

An arrest affidavit from Thursday said Kazemi had bloodshot eyes and alcohol on her breath when she was pulled over, but refused a breathalyzer test, saying "she was not drunk, she was high."

McNair and his family frequented the restaurant where Kazemi was a waitress, according to employees and patrons of Dave & Buster's in Nashville.

"She was reliable 90 percent of the time," manager Chris Truelove said of Kazemi. "She was pretty outgoing. A lot of the guests liked being around her, and she liked being around the guests."

Co-worker Shantez Jobe, 33, said she was friends with Kazemi.

"We talked about who had more fashion sense, and who was the cutest, and who could get more boys, you know some of the stuff girls do," Jobe said.

In June, McNair opened a restaurant near the Tennessee State University campus. It was closed Saturday evening, but had become a small memorial, where flowers, candles and notes had been placed outside the door.

McNair led the Titans to the 2000 Super Bowl, which they lost 23-16 to the St. Louis Rams. He was co-MVP of the NFL with Colts quarterback Peyton Manning in 2003.

Manning said in a statement Sunday that he had some great battles with the quarterback.

"Sharing the NFL MVP honor with him in 2003 was special because of what a great football player he was," Manning said. "I had the opportunity to play in a couple of Pro Bowls with him, and the time spent with him in Hawaii I'll never forget. I'll truly miss him. My condolences go out to his family."

McNair's most notable moment came in the 2000 Super Bowl. With the Titans trailing by seven, he led the team 87 yards in the final minute and 48 seconds, only to come up a yard short of a touchdown. Kevin Dyson caught his 9-yard pass, but was tackled at the 1-yard line by the Rams' Mike Jones.

McNair accounted for all of Tennessee's yards in that drive, throwing for 48 yards and rushing for 14. The rest of the yardage came on penalties against the Rams. Before that, he brought the Titans back from a 16-0 deficit to tie the game.

"If you were going to draw a football player, the physical part, the mental part, everything about being a professional, he is your guy," former Ravens and Titans teammate Samari Rolle said. "I can't even wrap my arms around it."

McNair grew up in rural Mississippi, and became a nationally known college football star playing for Alcorn State, a Division I-AA school in his home state. He was so dominant in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, he became a Heisman Trophy contender. National media flocked to little Lorman in the southwest corner of the Magnolia state to get a look at "Air McNair." He still holds the Division I-AA (now known as Football Championship Subdivision) records for career yards passing (14,496) and total offense (16,823).

McNair was the third overall draft pick in 1995 by the Houston Oilers, who eventually became the Titans. He finished his career with 31,304 yards passing and 174 touchdowns. McNair's rugged style led to numerous injuries and aches. He played with pain for several years, and the injuries ultimately forced him to retire.

During a five-game stretch at the end of the 2002 season, McNair was so bruised he couldn't practice. But he started all five games and won them, leading the Titans to an 11-5 record and a berth in the AFC championship game for the second time in four seasons.

McNair played all 16 games in 2006, his first season in Baltimore, and guided the Ravens to a 13-3 record. But he injured his groin during the season opener in 2007 and never regained the form that put him in those Pro Bowls.

McNair is survived by Mechelle, his wife of nearly 12 years; and sons Junior, Steven, Tyler and Trenton.

[erb0087]

"McNair and Kazemi had been together just two days earlier, when she was pulled over driving a 2007 Escalade registered to her and McNair. She was arrested on a DUI charges, and he was allowed to leave in a taxi."
=============================

Guns and Booze don't mix. That's pretty obvious.

It would be no violation of the 2nd Amendment to restrict legal gun ownership to those who never drink.

I'm not sure how something like that would be enforced -- maybe by sworn affidavit before a gun permit is obtained -- but it makes perfect sense.

Other Constitutional rights are legally constrained by commonsense laws. Keeping and bearing arms should be too.

[CBSName]

This is a real CSI moment.

After a day of investigation, police determine he did not shoot himself twice in the chest and twice in the head.

I agree figuring out what happened with the woman is going to be tricky, but the fact that McNair was murdered could have been announced immediately.

[hungry1968-16]

Are we going to have to hear about this for three weeks, like we heard about the child molesting Michael Jackson?

Or is McNair like Farrah Fawcett or Ed McMahon and not worthy of endless weeks of news coverage?

[woeisme1]

Nobody mentioned that this could be over drugs. Or maybe a gambling debt?

[woeisme1]

I'm calling the NRA.

[armyoftwelve]

Gee, giver the circumstances of the discovery of his and the woman's body how could this be anything BUT a homicide????

A lesson for all of us--stay in a hotel with a handgun for maximum safety. Especially if you're famous.

[myopinionpal]

This is only one of the outcomes for cheating on your spouse.

[ubrew12]

The others are having to give up a governorship, being impeached, or getting away with it.

[erb0087]

Another might be, to get together with a wealthy young beer heiress, and use the money to front a political career.

e.g. John McCain.

[vista8635]

I just don?t believe that it was a murder-suicide. They were murdered for one of three reasons:

1) They were killed for ?honor? (thar); the woman?s Middle Eastern family did it. People who come from ?honor? cultures places extreme importance on personal status, and female sexual fidelity. And they accept personal revenge including retaliatory killing if they feel that their family reputation has been ?dishonored?.

2) They were killed by contract. McNair?s wife had them killed for betraying her marriage.

3) They were killed for money. This could be from a variety of suspects.

[John_Merritt]

Good Analysis.

[John_Merritt]

May I add three more things to the mix:

4.) A jealous boyfriend? She was known to through her sexuality (affections) around?

5.) A hate crime. There are many, especially in the Southern states that have a real 'burden' gainst certain cultures.

6.) What happened to the serial killer from S. Carolina? Last time I checked it is only a short drive from S.C. to Tenn. Has he been caught yet?

[debinok1]

McNair's Death Ruled a Homicide

Was there really a doubt that this was murder? I think most accepted that as a given.

[erb0087]

A murder-suicide probably.

Or a murder scene staged to look that way. Staged to look like the girl killed him.

[beentheir1]

This Man, that was acting like a Child, was a Married Man with Children, that was Dating a 20 year old! I have nothing to say about this Man, that was acting like a Child, or his friends that is also acting like A Child!! You are all SICK, JUST SICK, BRAIN DEAD, A Married Man, and you all is doing the same, that is why you state the words of who falt it is. IT"S YOUR FALT!!! Why would a 20 year old, shoot and kill a Married Man, why would a Married Man let a 20 year old shoot and kill him!! All that say good things about this LOW-LIFE, NO GOOD, ADULTER you will see him one day in HELL, happy landings!!!!

[ubrew12]

beentheir1 said: "why would a Married Man let a 20 year old shoot and kill him!!"

Wow. Counseling, NOW. Who of us can claim that, in McNair's place, we wouldn't succumb to temptation? I'm not defending his actions. But they don't deserve the death-penalty. This is a tragedy for the victim AND the perpetrator (if the perp IS his girlfriend, which is unproven). Get a GriP!!!! Men are led by their 'little-man' ALL THE TIME (or have you not been watching the Sanford-channel lately).

[startalent]

beentheir1,

I totally agree with you 100% no matter what.With a 20 yr.old kid and he knew he was wrong because that girl was still growing and he took advantage of her mind and body. I'm sure he knew he was wrong, but just trying to cover it up by going to his friends place to sleep with the little teen!! I just feel so sorry for his wife what she has to go through listening to all of his BS what he has left behind. The only thing that I REALLY HATE is that they had to die like that. GOD bless his wife and kids!!I truely believe that the 20 yr.old took his life and hers as well.When you think you can get away with cheating on your other, it will always catch up with YOU. McNair, I know that you were a good person, but RIP.

[fred-mertz]

Murder! That is what guns are for! NOT for "defense". Guns can ONLY offend.

[kodiak09]

PEOPLE will MURDER by ANY means they can. The human race is the problem, not what they use commit the crime.

[fred-mertz]

Not so. Some methods of murder are extremely difficult to carry out, require brutal violence up close, and/or lots of planning and preparation. If you have a gun, all that's required is that get angry or depressed, and BOOM! That's why the NUMBER ONE fatal use of a gun by gun owners is SUICIDE, not self defense. In fact, self defense doesn't even come in second. After suicide, the next most frequent use of a gun is for MURDER, usually a wife, gf, husband, lover, child, parent, friend or neighbor.

[ubrew12]

fred-mertz said: "Murder! That is what guns are for! NOT for "defense". Guns can ONLY offend."

Thats the complete truth. OK, guns can also be used for defense or hunting, but they need MUCH more regulation than occurs presently in American society. Example, in Germany you can STILL own a gun, you just have to prove that you know how to shoot one, maintain one, store one, and are a responsible citizen (not some drunk crack-head with a vendetta). Does this insulate Germany from gun-deaths? H8ll no. But it drops the number of gun deaths by a factor of TEN (per 100,000 of population)!!! America's gun laws are CRAZY!!!

And here, again, is a tragic example of the 'equilizer' in practice in gun-happy America.

[kodiak09]

I agree that a gun is the easy way to commit murder but it still comes down to the person who uses it. The black market makes it too easy to acquire any kind of firearm. To legally buy a gun you have to pass a Federal back round check. Unfortunately there's nothing to check the mental status of an individual which inevitably determines the outcomes in these situations. And never underestimate the power of raw rage when someone is overcome the desire to kill. To kill isn't as difficult as it may seem when your filled with adrenaline and rage.

[kodiak09]

I didn't say they should go away. Everyone is quick to point their finger at the gun instead of the person who used it. Do you realize that more people are killed in car accidents per year than gun violence. If you go by that then all cars should be banned or more strictly regulated. People need to use their brains but I don't see that happening anytime soon. People are the problem, not the weapons.