Freshman linebacker shot

By DON STEWART
Collegian Staff Writer

A Penn State football player was reported to be in serious condition yesterday with a bullet wound to the neck and two male suspects from Pittsburgh are in custody after a shooting Sunday morning.

Freshman linebacker Brad Jones, 21, was hit by a bullet fired from a .357 magnum as he sat behind the wheel of his car. The shooting occurred in Jones' hometown of Monessen at 2:36 a.m., Monessen Police Chief Gary Tretter said.

Lanyere Rockamore, 25, and Albert Reid, 25, were arrested in connection with the shooting less than an hour after the incident occurred. Both men are in custody at Westmoreland County Jail after being charged with criminal conspiracy to commit homicide.

Tretter said Jones was shot shortly after getting into a verbal confrontation with Reid and Rockamore on the street outside a club. It is believed Jones went to his car after the confrontation, but as he was driving away a car in the opposite lane flashed its lights at him.

Jones rolled down his window as the car pulled beside him and was shot at short range by someone in the other car. The bullet entered Jones' neck, ricocheted off his spine, and lodged into his chest cavity.

Tretter said the cause and extent of the initial confrontation still is unknown.

"Basically we know that there were words exchanged," he said. "Everything right now is preliminary. We haven't had a chance to talk with Brad yet."

A spokesman at Allegheny General Hospital said last evening that Jones is in serious condition in the trauma unit. Tretter said Jones was conscious when rescue squads reached him shortly after the shooting. He has spoken to both Jones' parents and the hospital, but is unsure of Jones' ability to move below the waist.

Reid was arrested at 3:10 a.m. as he attempted to escape from a house. Rockamore was taken into custody 10 minutes prior to that following a brief chase.

Rockamore also was charged with aggravated assault, possession of a controlled substance and other charges. Eight large bags of marijuana were allegedly found in his car. He's slated for a preliminary hearing Friday on an unrelated charge stemming from alleged possession of crack cocaine.

Tretter said Jones never has been a person known to cause trouble.

"He's a good athlete," Tretter said. "Everybody knows him. He's well-liked around here."

Jones redshirted this season after injuring his ankle in preseason practice, forcing him to undergo surgery. He was primarily a blocking fullback for Monessen High School, which he helped lead to the state finals in 1995, but he also was used as a linebacker, tight end and offensive lineman.

After being the first member of the Class of 2000 to verbally commit to the Nittany Lions, Jones was forced to delay his Penn State career for one season to attend Kiski Prep School to improve his grades.

"It's a tragedy,'' Penn State coach Joe Paterno told the Associated Press. "Brad is a young man with a lot of promise. We hope he can recover completely and hope that everyone will stick behind him as he works to overcome this.''