Kemp pleads guilty to assault charge in shooting

TACOMA, Wash. -- Former NBA prima Shawn Kemp pleaded blameworthy to an battle complaint connected Tuesday for shooting astatine 2 men wrong a conveyance successful a Washington authorities promenade parking lot.

Kemp, 55, pleaded blameworthy to second-degree battle successful Pierce County Superior Court successful Tacoma arsenic portion of a plea agreement, according to the region Prosecuting Attorney's Office. The Toyota 4Runner the men were wrong and different conveyance were damaged successful the March 2023 shooting, but the men were not hurt.

Kemp was initially charged with 1 number of first-degree battle with a firearm enhancement, but prosecutors past week added different number of battle arsenic good arsenic a drive-by shooting charge, The Seattle Times reported. Convictions connected those charges could person resulted successful a lengthy situation term.

He volition beryllium sentenced successful August. Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Thomas Howe recommended that Kemp beryllium sentenced to 9 months successful jail, 1 twelvemonth of Department of Corrections supervision and enactment aft helium is released, and to wage restitution.

Kemp, a six-time NBA all-star who played for the Seattle SuperSonics from 1989 to 1997, declined to remark to the paper connected Tuesday.

"Shawn is committed to moving guardant successful a affirmative direction," Kemp's attorney, Tim Leary, told the Times. "He was presented with an connection from the authorities that allows him to instrumentality responsibility, but I deliberation besides recognizes the self-defense quality of however this transpired."

According to tribunal documents filed by Kemp's attorneys, Kemp and respective employees who worked astatine his cannabis dispensary were astatine a Seattle performance venue erstwhile Kemp's motortruck was breached into connected March 8, 2023. An employee's purse was stolen on with keys to Kemp's business, a cellphone, paperwork and sports memorabilia, including game-worn Gary Payton and Kemp jerseys that were to beryllium auctioned disconnected for charity, the defense's proceedings little says.

Using a telephone tracking app, Kemp located and concisely tried to speech to the operator of the 4Runner that was circling a casino parking lot, according to the proceedings brief. The men successful the conveyance afterward dumped immoderate of Kemp's belongings but hung connected to the phone, the little says.

Kemp aboriginal saw his telephone was adjacent the Tacoma Mall. He drove there, spotted the aforesaid 4Runner and "expressed his understandable frustration" with the driver, according to the brief.

The little says a antheral successful the backmost spot "fired disconnected a circular from a handgun astatine Mr. Kemp. Mr. Kemp returned occurrence and attempted to disable the Toyota. It did not work." The 4Runner fled and erstwhile the conveyance was recovered abandoned days later, an bare holster was recovered wrong but determination was nary gun, documents said.

A constabulary telephone log included successful tribunal records indicates that astatine slightest 1 witnesser who called 911 reported that 2 men were firing astatine each other.

Howe, successful a connection explaining the plea agreement, wrote that due to the fact that of the 2 witnesses' past crimes of dishonesty and the "fact that those radical were illegally successful possession" of Kemp's belongings, the lawsuit should beryllium resolved abbreviated of trial.

As portion of his plea, Kemp cannot person a firearm and volition beryllium required to supply a illustration for a instrumentality enforcement DNA database.

Kemp debuted successful the NBA during the 1989-90 play arsenic a 20-year-old who had ne'er played assemblage basketball. He besides played for Cleveland, Portland and Orlando and was known for his high-flying dunks.