California Basketball Legend Gene Ransom Dies In Highway Shooting
Baseball icon Gene Ransom has died after a shooting Friday (Feb. 4) on a highway in Oakland, Calif., according to law enforcement officials. The former University of California-Berkeley standout was killed in what is being described as a road rage crime.
The California Highway Patrol’s Oakland division announced via Facebook that 25-year-old Juan Angel Garcia of San Francisco was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and booked on Saturday afternoon at the Alameda County Santa Rita Jail and is being held without bail.
The CHP says the incident occurred at around 5:15 p.m. local time on Friday on I-880. Ransom was allegedly traveling on Garcia’s left side when the suspect fired a gun at his black Honda Civic.
He subsequently veered right and collided with a guardrail before coming to a stop. Garcia ended up fleeing the scene. Ransom was pronounced dead when responding officers arrived. After leads developed that pointed toward Garcia as the suspect, an arrest warrant was obtained and he was taken into custody without incident, police said on Saturday (Feb. 5). An investigation into the shooting is still ongoing.
As a Cal Golden Bear, Ransom averaged 14.8 points per game in over 80 contests between 1975 and 1978. According to Sports Illustrated, he averaged 17 points per game during his final season with the team.
Ransom was selected by the Golden State Warriors in the ninth round of the 1977 NBA Draft. While he never played in a professional game, in 2001, Ransom was inducted into the California Athletics Hall of Fame.
"He showed love to everyone he met and came across sometimes as a flirt. That was him, Gene 'the dream' Ransom,” Thaxter Ransom, Ransom's son, said in a statement. “He opened the door for future basketball stars who came out of the Bay Area. He was looked up to and loved by many. I'll never forget him, and will always love him."
