With many still in shock over the fatal shooting of former Ravens quarterback Steve McNair, details of the events leading up to his death have emerged over the last several days. Though there are still questions to be answered, many facts have come to light about the circumstances that led to McNair's passing.
Below is a timeline of factual reports surrounding McNair's death. It is based on a collection of reports and stories from accredited media outlets following the incident closely, including The Baltimore Sun, *The Tennessean, *ESPN, USA Today and SI.com.
Saturday, July 4th
- Steve McNair's body with gunshot wounds is found by friend Wayne Neeley in a Nashville condo they shared. Neeley contacts McNair's bodyguard Robert Gaddy, who calls the police. An unidentified woman is also found dead. Police say they do not know the details of the shooting.
- The unnamed woman is later revealed to be 20-year-old Saleh Kazemi, a waitress at a local Dave & Buster's who McNair seemingly befriended. Witnesses say McNair was a frequent visitor at the restaurant and the condominium. Details later surface that McNair had been dating Kazemi for several months prior to the shooting. Fred McNair, Steve's brother, says he has never heard of Kazemi.
- It is learned that Kazemi had been arrested for a DUI two days earlier while driving a 2007 Cadillac Escalade registered to both her and McNair. Kazemi insisted to police that she was not drunk, but "high." McNair was in the car at the time but was allowed to leave via taxi. He later posted bail for Kazemi.
Sunday, July 5th
- A Sunday autopsy confirmed that McNair's death was in fact a homicide, with two gunshot wounds to the head and two to the chest. Kazemi had one gunshot wound to the head. A semi-automatic pistol was found near the bodies. Police have not classified Kazemi's death, as they are waiting on ballistic reports and a formal autopsy. Therefore, the rampant rumors of a murder-suicide have not been confirmed.
- Mechelle McNair, Steve's wife, is said to be "distraught" and has yet to comment publicly on her husband.
Monday, July 6th
- Police confirm that the gun that killed McNair and Kazemi was purchased by Kazemi two days prior to their deaths and was found underneath Kazemi's body at the crime scene.
- Kazemi's nephew, Farzin Abdi, says that McNair had taken Kazemi on trips and had met Kazemi's family. He says that McNair had spoken of divorcing his wife. Sources close to McNair's wife say she is "blindsided," and did not know of her husband's relationship with Kazemi.
Tuesday, July 7th
- Tennessee state medical examiner Bruce Levy says that while murder-suicide is the most likely scenario, investigators have been slow to officially make that classification because of Kazemi's lack of a motive.
- It is confirmed that the gunshot wound Kazemi received was from close range.
UPDATED:
Wednesday, July 8th
- *The Tennessean *is reporting that Tennessee state medical examiner Feng Li indicates that McNair was, in fact, murdered by Kazemi, who then shot herself in the temple. Gunshot residue and ballistics tests report that the incident can be classified a murder-suicide, but Li will wait until the investigation is officially closed before he completes the death certificate.
- The newspaper also reports that Kazemi was selling all of her furniture on July 2, two days before she killed McNair.
- Police confirm in a press conference in Nashville that McNair was asleep when Kazemi shot him, before sitting down next to him and shooting herself. Nashville Metro Police Chief Ronal Serpas says that Kazemi had communicated to friends how overwhelmed she was from financial problems and was ready to "end it all." Her roommate was about to move out, and she was also making payments on the Escalade she co-owned with McNair.
- Police also say that Kazemi had learned McNair was involved with another woman, who Kazemi attempted to follow days before she killed McNair. Police say they have talked to that woman but did not identity her.
A public memorial has been announced for Thursday, July 9 in Nashville, with McNair's longtime teammate and current Raven **Derrick Mason** speaking. Ravens general manager **Ozzie Newsome** will reportedly attend McNair's funeral in Mississippi on Saturday.
On Monday, McNair's longtime Tennessee Titans Jeff Fisher addressed the media for the first time since the news broke, asking that people look past the circumstances of his death and remember him for the man he was.
"The Steve McNair that I knew would want me to say 'I'm sorry," Fisher said. "I'm not perfect. We all make decisions sometimes that are not in our best interests. Please forgive me.'"
BaltimoreRavens.com will continue to monitor this story and provide factual updates as they occur.
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