A retired Minneapolis firefighter was arrested for allegedly shooting and yelling racial slurs at a former University of Minnesota football player.
According to Fox 9 Minneapolis, Tellis Redmon told Minneapolis police officers he was driving through an alleyway of retired firefighter Eric Jagers’ neighborhood to pick up his 5-year-old son.
Redmon, 44, said he saw wooden boards strewn along with other debris in the alleyway. The former running back says he attempted to avoid hitting the objects, and Jagers suddenly appeared and threw a boot at his vehicle after a piece of debris landed on his property.
Sports Illustrated reported that Redmon told police that he got out of his vehicle and Jagers demanded he pick up a piece of wood that landed on his property.
Redmon refused, and Jagers reportedly went to his garage to grab a shotgun. The 54-year-old then allegedly began to pick a fight with Redmon and allegedly attempted to shoot him. Jagers said that he grabbed him by his shirt and demanded that he gets on all fours after he refused to pick up the object, according to Sports Illustrated.
The two men reportedly wrestled as Redmon attempted to remove the gun from Jagers’ hand. Jagers was able to get the gun near Redmon’s head and pulled the trigger but didn’t hit Redmon, according to Sports Illustrated. He lost control of the gun and dropped it. Redmon left the scene and called police.
Jager’s neighbor witnessed the incident and said that he called Redmon the N-word. The neighbor also said he heard Jagers yell, “Say goodbye to your 5-year-old,” before he pulled the trigger.
He also allegedly told Redmon, “I am a firefighter, and I know the police. I won’t get in trouble.”
Redmon played for the University of Minnesota Gophers from 1999 to 2001. He went on to sign with the Baltimore Ravens practice squad. He is currently a special education teacher and an assistant football coach at Robbinsdale Cooper High School.
The incident reportedly took place on April 14, with Minneapolis police saying they responded to reports of a man with a gun in the 4000 block of 17th Avenue. Police said when they located Jagers, he had two firearms in his possession and refused to get on the ground when police ordered him to. Police took Jagers into custody on April 14.
The arrest report states, “He continued to walk toward officers and said he was not getting on the ground,” according to Fox 9 Minneapolis.
“Defendant stated he saw Victim run over a board by his garage and he lost it,” the arrest report states. “Defendant stated that he regrets everything that happened and wished that it never happened. Defendant admitted that he retrieved a gun from his garage when Victim refused to pick up the board that he ran over. Defendant said that he didn’t think he pointed the gun at Victim, but he did point the gun into the air and told Victim that he better pick up the board.”
Jagers eventually dropped his weapons but continued to ignore police orders to get on the ground. He reportedly tried to flee the scene on foot. Officers tackled him to the ground and arrested him. Police also reportedly located more weapons in Jager’s vehicle after the incident.
The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department has charged Jagers with one count of second-degree assault, a felony count of second-degree assault – dangerous weapon, and a felony count of threats of violence – reckless disregard risk. He is being held on a $100,000 bond, according to KSTP-TV, and has a May 18 court date.
Attorney Lee Hutton told Fox 9 Minneapolis that the charges “should elevate to a hate crime.”
“My client, ex-[G]opher football player and current teacher, is a hero as he took on an armed and dangerous person to save his son and community from harm,” Hutton said to Fox 9 Minneapolis. “Now, my client must face the reality of maintaining his family’s safety in light of charges against the perpetrator that should elevate to a hate crime. At the moment, my client and family are safe but left with concerns that enough is not being done to protect them from future harm.”
