FORT PIERCE – The victim of a fatal shooting by a BB gun on Aug. 22 has been identified as Shawn Johnson, 34, of the 4000 block of Southwest Cherbon St., Fort Pierce, according to a recently released arrest affidavit.
Johnson was shot in the right shoulder by a BB gun allegedly fired by Jabari Nakeem Cowart, 36, of the 2000 block of Avenue G., Fort Pierce, Fort Pierce Police said.
As a result, Cowart was charged with manslaughter and is being held in the St. Lucie County Jail on a $50,000 bond as of Aug. 28, according to the jail web site.
Police responded to the 2900 block of Avenue G, Fort Pierce at about 8 p.m., Aug. 22 to find a 34-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wound in his right armpit, according to the arrest affidavit. He was taken to a local hospital, where he later died, police said.
Cowart told officers that Johnson asked to see the BB gun that another man was holding and that when Johnson was “messing around” with the gun, he accidentally shot himself, according to the arrest affidavit.
Investigators determined that the rifle’s barrel was too long for Johnson to have shot himself in the manner that Cowart described.
A witness told police that Cowart asked to see the gun and then Cowart turned and fired the rifle to the southwest of the home, near where Johnson was standing.
Johnson grabbed his side, walked towards the back yard where he collapsed, according to the arrest affidavit.
Cowart told officers that Cowart heard Johnson scream and ran outside the house to find that Johnson shot himself, according to the arrest affidavit.
When officers said that they had sworn statements from witnesses claiming that Cowart shot Johnson, Cowart then tried to shift the blame and also tried to avoid answering questions before saying he wanted to speak with an attorney, according to the arrest affidavit.