More Pacer Disgrace

So much for the Pacers' public relations effort to convince the public they have reinvented a new and improved team. We awake to news this morning that four Pacers were involved in an overnight shooting incident at Club Rio. At least one Pacer player, Stephen Jackson, fired shots at another patron of the club after the patron allegedly struck him in the jaw and then hit him with his car after the dispute spilled over into the club's parking lot. Jamaal Tinsley, Marquis Daniels and Jimmie Hunter were also reported to be at the club. Jackson, Tinsley and Daniels were all carrying concealed weapons, which Indiana law permits with the proper permits. The Star reports:

Police questioned four members of the Pacers this morning following gunfire outside a Northwestside strip club.

Officers were called to Club Rio at about 3 a.m., according to WTHR-TV (Channel 13), the Star’s newsgathering partner.

The incident reportedly began with an altercation inside the bar. The players left, but Stephen Jackson told officers he was slugged in the jaw when he went outside. Jackson said he was then hit by a car and fired his 9 mm pistol in self-defense. Also at the scene were Jamaal Tinsley and Marquis Daniels, who police said also had pistols in their cars. All three of the players had permits for the weapons. Pacer Jimmie Hunter was also there.

It was thought that no one was hit by the gunfire, and there were no immediate arrests. The three players were allowed to go home, but police remained on the scene hours later.

WTHR-TV is reporting that Stephen Jackson was limping at the scene of the incident, but he refused an offer of medical treatment after an ambulance arrived. Also, police found marijuana in a car owned by Tinsley. The report did not name the player. The Pacers' Donnie Walsh, Larry Bird and Rick Carlisle might as well toss the television ad they've been running for the past few weeks boasting about this new team and go back to the drawing board. Looks like more of the same bad stuff, although no arrests have been reported yet.

UPDATE: IPD is saying the Pacer players will receive no special treatment, but that is debatable. Police found a small amount of marijuana in Tinsley's car. The police say no arrest was made because there were several people in the car. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the owner deemed to have constructive possession of an illegal drug when it is found in his car? Sure, it's a defense that the marijuana actually belonged to someone else, but I specifically handled a case like this when I volunteered as a Marion Co. deputy prosecutor quite a few years ago. The owner of the vehicle was charged with possession of the drug, as well as an unregistered gun he had in the car with him. I obtained a conviction against him on both counts, even though he testified that neither belonged to him. If the police followed their basic procedures, Tinsley would have already been charged with illegal possession. Also, the Star reported that Daniels had a Florida gun permit. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe he needs an Indiana gun carrying permit to have a gun on his person in Indiana.