Steven Michael Knapp, a 23-year-old male, died on August 4, 1995, after a shooting in Chester, Pennsylvania. The case unfolded late on a summer night, with police finding him in the 2900 block of West Third Street, lying on the sidewalk and bleeding from what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the chest. He was taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, but he was pronounced dead at 11:40 p.m.
The shooting was later described as a homicide and a gun violence death.
According to a newspaper account published about a month later, investigators believed the shooting happened outside a bar near the 200 block of Clayton Street around 11:15 p.m. on August 4. The scene described by authorities suggests a sudden confrontation outside the business, ending with Knapp shot in the thorax and left gravely wounded on the sidewalk nearby. Police later said the killing stemmed from a fight outside the bar before the shooting occurred.
The man identified as the suspect was John Thomas McKnight, 44, of the 100 block of Woodcrest Avenue in Aston. Authorities said McKnight had been wanted on charges connected to Knapp’s death, and he turned himself in at Delaware County CID headquarters in Media about a month after the killing. He arrived with his attorney and surrendered around 1 p.m., according to police.
McKnight was arrested by county Detective John Slowik and Chester Detective Sgt. Floyd Lewis. Chester police said he was waiting for arraignment in Chester District Court after his surrender. He was charged in an arrest warrant stemming from Knapp’s murder, and authorities said the charges included homicide and weapons offenses.
Investigators said McKnight was identified by two witnesses from a photo array as the person who shot Knapp outside the bar where the fight began. The same account also noted that McKnight was the boyfriend of the owner of the bar where the fight was reported to have erupted. Online sources located for this synopsis confirm the arrest and the charges, but they do not provide a clear final outcome showing whether McKnight was tried, convicted, acquitted, or had the charges otherwise resolved.
