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Police investigate a shooting at the intersection of South West Street and West Fayette Street on the edge of Armory Square in Syracuse on Wednesday afternoon, April 23, 2025. Dennis Nett | [email protected] Douglass Dowty | ddowty@syracuse.
com Syracuse, NY — Onondaga County prosecutors are investigating whether a man acted justifiably in self-defense when he shot and killed a knife-wielding man during a road rage incident Wednesday. The 43-year-old man who fired the gun might be an innocent victim who killed Ezell Hicks Jr. , 61, out of a reasonable fear for his life and that of his passenger.
Or, he is a criminal who intentionally killed Hicks when there was no real deadly threat, or when he could have retreated with complete safety. The shooting happened at about 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday a t the busy intersection of West Fayette and West streets. The two men in different cars had been arguing when Hicks got out and approached the other man’s car with a knife, authorities said. Through the open window, the other driver shot Hicks in the chest.
The other driver has not been identified publicly by police. A few factors will determine whether the man who fired the gun could be prosecuted, said defense lawyer Michael Spano, a former homicide prosecutor in Syracuse. The first question is who was the initial aggressor in the deadly encounter? That was likely settled Thursday afternoon when prosecutors revealed that the man with a knife left his vehicle and approached the vehicle of the man with the gun.
“If the shooter stayed in his car, than I doubt he’s the initial aggressor,” Spano said. Second comes the question of whether the shooter reasonably felt in fear for his life or for the life of someone around him. When it comes to a jury, that question is broken into two parts: First, did the shooter personally feel in fear for his life or the life of his passenger? To answer that, a jury would take into context what’s going on at that moment, Spano said.
What could the shooter feel, see and hear? How close was his adversary? How big was the knife? What was the other man yelling? Next, a jury would consider whether a reasonable person, in that situation, would be in fear of their life or that of their passenger. If both of those are yes, then the shooter might be considered justified to use deadly force. Lastly, New York law requires that a civilian make an attempt to retreat from a deadly threat if “completely safe” to do so, Spano said.
Unlike places with “stand your ground” laws, New York requires retreat, if possible, before using deadly physical force in return. However, it’s unclear if that was a realistic option in this case or not. Could the shooter have rolled up his windows and locked his car doors? Could he have safely driven away while in the middle of a busy intersection during rush hour? Was there time to react? “You have to look at the whole picture of what this person was experiencing,” Spano said.
“You have a duty to retreat if (you can) in complete safety for yourself and others.” When someone claims self-defense, a prosecutor is required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it wasn’t self-defense. A jury cannot decide that both men were partially to blame: a verdict is either guilty or not guilty.
The district attorney’s office will present evidence to a grand jury which will ultimately determine whether to charge the shooter. Police investigate a fatal shooting at the intersection of South West Street and West Fayette Street on the edge of Armory Square in Syracuse on Wednesday afternoon, April 23, 2025. Greta Stuckey | gstuckey@syracuse.
com More articles on road rage shooting Road rage between strangers escalated quickly before fatal Syracuse shooting, prosecutor says Police name man who died in fatal road rage shooting in Syracuse Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at [email protected] or (315) 470-6070..
