Jake Gardner, the White Omaha bar owner who shot and killed 22-year-old James Scurlock, died on Sunday after taking his own life, his attorneys announced at a news conference.
Just last week Gardner was indicted by a grand jury on four felony charges, including manslaughter, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, attempted first-degree assault and making terrorist threats.
That indictment, according to Gardner’s attorneys, “really shook up” the 38-year-old, the Omaha World-Herald reports.
“I had the opportunity to talk with Mr. Gardner before his return, and he was really shook up,” attorney Stu Dornan said. “The grand jury indictment was a shock to him, it was a shock to us, it was a shock to many people.”
According to the report, Gardner shot himself outside of a medical clinic in suburban Portland, Oregon, the very day that he was meant to surrender to authorities on the charges for the May 30 altercation that led to Scurlock’s death.
An attorney for Scurlock’s family declined to comment on Gardner’s death, saying it would be inappropriate, the World-Herald reports. The family, attorney Justin Wayne said, was working out what Gardner’s death would mean for their search for justice.