An argument over a pickup basketball game at a Memphis fitness center escalated into a fatal shooting, claiming the life of 18-year-old Vicdarrius Pollard, a recent high school graduate with plans to attend college. The young man, a male, was shot multiple times on the evening of Friday, July 24, 2015, inside the LA Fitness on Winchester Road near Bill Morris Parkway.
Witnesses reported that a dispute erupted on the basketball court between Pollard and another player, later identified as Ronald Jones.
The disagreement over the game allegedly led Jones to leave the gymnasium, retrieve a handgun from his vehicle, and return to the basketball court. He then confronted Pollard again, and the verbal altercation quickly turned deadly as Jones opened fire, striking Pollard multiple times. The shooter fled the scene after the incident, leaving behind a chaotic and tragic scene. Pollard had recently graduated from Kirby High School and was preparing to start his college journey.
In the days following the shooting, police identified 21-year-old Ronald Jones as the suspect. He was taken into custody on the Tuesday after the incident and was subsequently charged with first-degree murder. The investigation revealed that the entire tragic event stemmed from the argument during the basketball game.
In December 2015, a grand jury indicted Ronald Jones on the charge of first-degree murder. The case proceeded to trial, and in November 2016, a jury convicted Jones, who was 22 at the time, of second-degree murder in the death of Vicdarrius Pollard. Following the conviction, Jones was taken into custody to await sentencing for the senseless act of violence that cut short a young man's promising future.
