Lukace Shane Kendle, the security guard that shot 29-year-old Kijuan Byrd dead outside of Club Lexx strip club in Miami, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder, the Miami Herald reports.
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The arrest comes after Byrd’s family, who is represented by Trayvon Martin’s family attorney Benjamin Crump, held a press conference complaining that the Miami-Dade Police Department was too slow in pursuing charges against Kendle. NewsOne reported on Friday that Byrd and his friend, Michael Smathers, were shot outside of the strip club on June 1, leaving Byrd dead and Smathers in critical condition.
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Here are the full details of what happened on the night Kendle shot and killed Byrd, according to police: Around 10:45 p.m., Kendle arrived in the parking lot of Club Lexx, parked his Chevrolet Avalanche and “grabbed his security gear, which included a semiautomatic gun, a nightstick, a badge and a flashlight.”
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He noticed Byrd and Smathers inside of a Ford F-150 in a nearby parking space rolling up marijuana cigarettes. Kendle says she first decided to join co-workers across the parking lot, but turned back to retrieve something from his truck. As approached his truck, Kendle says he saw the Ford’s doors swing open and then heard someone shout, “I’m going to kill that n—–.”
Kendle says as Smather’s was exiting the vehicle, he “might have been pulling something ‘upwards.’ ’’ Kendle never saw a weapon, but says he feared for his life. He then pulled out his gun and shot Smathers four times. Kendle then focused on Byrd. He told the cops that he shot in Byrd’s direction once because he felt his life was in danger. Byrd had crawled under the vehicle at this point.
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