NBA

Stephen Jackson’s Home Robbed, Armed Men Tie Up His Wife

Three armed men invaded Bobcats forward Stephen Jackson’s home, tied up his wife, and robbed his house while Jackson was away early Wednesday morning. The Charlotte police are currently investigating the home invasion.

The robbers held Jackson’s wife, Renata, at gunpoint, then locked her in a bathroom while they raided the house for “several Louis Vuitton wallets, jewelry, a stun gun and a 9 millimeter handgun.”

The Jacksons reside in a gated community in South Charlotte and the house formerly belonged to Jason Richardson. Question number 1: isn’t the main draw of a gated community not to get robbed? Are the gates at this particular community not high enough? Jackson should get some kind of refund because of this.

Seriously, though, this is why a reported 90 percent of athletes carry guns. Following the death of Sean Taylor, and the thousands of other, lesser-known instances of athletes being robbed and shot at, paranoia among these players is at an all-time high.

Jackson wouldn’t have to look too far to feel threatened:

In Charlotte in 2005, Charlotte Bobcats forward/center Melvin Ely and two other people were robbed and shot at outside a South Boulevard strip club. Ely ultimately recovered his $30,000 piece of jewelry from a pawn shop.

Last year, Carolinas Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis reported to police that his 1975 Chevrolet Caprice Classic was taken from the front of his home in the Providence Plantation community of southeast Charlotte.

The main counterpoint to the “athletes should carry guns” argument has always been “well, why don’t these guy just hire bodyguards?” Many athletes are wary of this option since bodyguards aren’t always trustworthy and tend to draw more unwanted attention. This leaves getting a very mean dog, setting up an elaborate home security system, and carrying a concealed weapon as the only other viable options.

[Armed men break into home of Bobcats' Stephen Jackson] Charlotte Observer