Jovan Belcher’s teammates
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Jovan Belcher’s teammates on Kansas City Chiefs refuse to blame guns for horrifying murder-suicide
By Kevin Armstrong In Kansas City , Vera Chinese AND Stephen Rex Brown
December 3, 2012
Jovan Belcher’s grieving teammates on the Kansas City Chiefs refused to blame guns for his horrifying murder-suicide.
"If you have daughters, you should (have a gun),” Chiefs defensive lineman Shaun Smith said Monday. “You have to protect yourself. You work so hard to get to where you at, I'll be damned if I’ll just let someone take it from me.”
Linebacker Brandon Siler, who had Thanksgiving dinner with Belcher, also had no problems with guns.
“Well, a majority of people own one, especially in the places where they're legal. Most of the time they're for self defense or sport,” he said.
The unusual questions about guns and the gridiron came days after Belcher, 25, blew away his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins, 22, in their Kansas City home Saturday.
Police said Monday that Belcher used two guns when he killed Perkins and then himself. He possessed both legally.
Also on Monday Perkins’ family had a message for her killer’s loved ones: pray for them.
“Please keep us in your hearts and prayers as well as the Belcher family for two lives were lost,” the Perkinses said in a statement.
“We appreciate the outpouring of love and concern.”
The outburst of violence from the hardworking and humble football player still baffled numerous people who knew him.
“The impact that this inconceivable tragedy has had on our hearts is immeasurable. We are overwhelmed with both sadness and confusion,” said Belcher’s cousin, Yamiesse Lawrence, 31, in a statement.
As both families continued to grieve, a few details trickled out about Belcher and Perkins’ final hours.
Perkins, 22, was found dead in the master bedroom of their home mere minutes from Arrowhead Stadium with multiple gunshot wounds around 7:52 a.m. Saturday, according to a report released by Kansas City police.
Ten minutes later police received a call about Belcher, who was armed outside of the Kansas City Chiefs practice facility.
The first person to encounter the disturbed football player was Chiefs general manager Scott Piolli, Sports Illustrated reported.
"I came here to tell you thank you. Thank you for my chance. I love you, bro,” the magazine reported Belcher saying to his boss.
Soon, head coach Romeo Crennel and defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs came to the parking lot and tried to calm down their player.
“I was trying to tell him life is not over. Let's get this worked out,” Crennel said Monday.
But Belcher literally had blood on his hands — a photo of the interior of his 2007 Bentley Continental GT obtained by The Daily News showed a gear shifter stained by Perkins’ blood.
Cops arrived, and Belcher “observed their presence and moved to an area behind a vehicle” according to a police report. “From that position Belcher shot himself one time in the head.”
Sergeant Marisa Barnes, a spokeswoman for the Kansas City police, said Belcher used two different guns, and that he possessed both legally.
Before and after Sunday’s win over the Carolina Panthers his teammates struggled with how to acknowledge Belcher’s death.
The team pledged to establish a fund for Belcher and Perkins’ orphaned 3-month-old daughter Zoe.
The team also held a moment of silence for domestic violence victims before kickoff.
By Monday players had become more comfortable speaking about their teammate.
“Jovan is a member of our family. What he did we didn't like, We're not crazy about,” Crennel said. “When you go out in society, you don't see people throwing family member out the door. They're still loved."
