Tamir Johnson Obituary, Death; – A man fatally shot Sunday in an Allentown road rage incident has been identified by authorities. The Lehigh County District Attorney is investigating whether Tamir Johnson, 35, of Whitehall Township, was shot in self-defense.
Johnson was pronounced dead shortly before 5 a.m. Sunday at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township, according to the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office
Johnson died from a gunshot wound to the torso and the death was ruled a homicide by Lehigh County Coroner Daniel A. Buglio. An autopsy was conducted Monday. Johnson was driving an Audi when he overtook another man driving a Prius just before 3:40 a.m. Sunday heading west on Hamilton Street in the city’s downtown, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.
As the vehicles crossed Fifth Street, authorities said Johnson forced the Prius to the curb. Then Johnson got out of his car and swung a metal baseball bat at the Prius drivers’ side door, the DA’s office said. Then, the Prius driver shot Johnson, authorities said. No charges were filed, although that might change as investigators pore over all the evidence, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said.
“We are reviewing the possibility of that this was justified use of self-defense,” Holihan said Monday. The Prius driver drove about a block and a half away from the shooting scene and called 911, authorities said. He remained there until police arrived and turned over his legally-owned 9 mm handgun to police, authorities said.
Investigators obtained video surveillance footage of the incident. The DA’s office said the Audi had two occupants and the Prius had one occupant. The case is being investigated by the Allentown Police Department Det. Sgt. Damian Murray and Det. Jonathan Manning; the Lehigh County Homicide Task Force; the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office; and the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office.
