SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- Former San Diego Chargers wide
receiver Mark Seay, wounded in a drive-by shooting nearly two
decades ago, has reportedly lost a second brother to gun violence.
James Seay, 36, was found in the backyard of a home shortly
after 7 p.m. Tuesday, police Sgt. Mike Desrochers said. The victim
had been shot several times and was pronounced dead at the scene.
No arrests were made and other details were not released.
A relative at the scene told The Sun newspaper that Seay was the
brother of Mark Seay, although the county coroner's office said it
could not immediately confirm that. Witnesses also told the Sun
they saw two men running from the home.
Repeated calls to a police spokesman were not returned
Wednesday.
The coroner's Web site said the shooting occurred on North
Muscupiabe Street. The home was once listed as Mark Seay's address,
according to a property records search conducted by The Associated
Press.
Seay, 39, grew up in San Bernardino, about 70 miles east of
downtown Los Angeles.
The former wide receiver played five seasons in the National
Football League before retiring in 1997. During his time with the
Chargers, he caught the game-winning touchdown pass in a playoff
game against Miami that sent the team to the Super Bowl. He caught
seven passes during Super Bowl XXIX, which the Chargers lost to San
Francisco.
A telephone message left at the home, which was identified on an
answering machine as the Seay residence, was not immediately
returned. A message left at the home of a Mark Seay in Laguna Hills
also was not immediately returned.
Seay's brother, Elvin Seay Jr., was shot to death in January
2003 at a motel in San Bernardino. A man was convicted of
second-degree murder.
Seay himself was shot on Halloween 1988 during a drive-by
shooting as he shielded his niece. He lost a kidney in the attack,
which left a bullet lodged in his body. At the time, he was playing
for California State University, Long Beach. Two years after the
attack, he had recovered enough to catch 48 passes in a Long Beach
game.