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The Philadelphia Eagles' decision to release wide receiver DeSean Jackson on Friday may have had more to do with the company he kept than a lack of trade partners.
According to a lengthy report by Eliot Shorr-Parks and A.J. Perez of NJ.com (which was published Friday before Jackson's release), the Eagles were concerned about Jackson's off-field behavior - specifically, his connection to a Los Angeles-based street gang:
... sources close to Jackson and within the Eagles' organization say, it's Jackson's off-field behavior that concerns the front office. A bad attitude, an inconsistent work ethic, missed meetings and a lack of chemistry with head coach Chip Kelly are the reasons, sources told NJ.com. And when the Eagles looked more deeply into why Jackson was missing meetings, they found that his friends were becoming a more powerful -- and negative -- influence in his life.
Now the Eagles have even more serious concerns -- Jackson's continued association with reputed Los Angeles street gang members who have been connected to two homicides since 2010.
Jackson was neither a witness nor a defendant in the aforementioned homicides, but reportedly knew men involved in both crimes.Â
According to the report, Jackson "frequently" appeared in photographs with Theron Shakir, a purported member of the Crips who was charged with, and later acquitted, of the Dec. 29, 2010 murder of 14-year-old Taburi Watson.Â
LAPD detective Eric Crosson said he conducted a phone interview with Jackson in late 2011 after receiving unspecified information that he may have knowledge of Shakir's activities on the night of the murder. Crosson would not provide details of the conversation, but said Jackson was "cooperative at the time."
Crosson also told NJ.com that he contacted the Eagles via phone before interviewing Jackson to alert them of Jackson's connection to Shakir, but did not receive a response from the team.
When contacted by NJ.com on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Eagles said they had "no comment at this time." A source within the organization later told NJ.com that current members of the Eagles front office had been unaware of Jackson's connections to an alleged murderer.Â
Jackson's name also reportedly surfaced as part of a 2012 gang-related murder that occurred outside a South Los Angeles business, which police say was owned or leased by a member of his family.
Crosson told NJ.com that several documents belonging to Jackson - including a car title, a New Jersey-issued gun permit, and credit card receipts - were found by investigators during a search of the building. Crosson then made several attempts to contact Jackson by phone, but said they were never able to connect.
Despite Jackson's name surfacing in two Crips-related murders, Crosson said there is no hard evidence that he is a member of the gang, though he does find it troubling that Jackson routinely flashes gang signs.
"You don't want to see anybody throwing up gang signs like he did in the Redskins game last year," Crosson said. "Those were neighborhood Crip gang signs and he flashed them during a game. He may not be affiliated with the gang, but they don't [ordinarily] take kindly to those not in the gang throwing up those gang signs."
Jackson's agent, EAG Management CEO and founder Denise White, would not make Jackson available for an interview, but did issue this statement to NJ.com:
"DeSean Jackson is not a gang member. He's far, far from it."
