Jordan's Red Lexus that Effected his Retirement in the NBA

James R. Jordan, Sr. was murdered in his car in North Carolina in 1993. If the name sounds familiar, James was the father of a famous NBA player and Nike ambassador, Michael Jordan. James was driving home in his Red Lexus SC400 when he pulled into a parking lot of a Quality Inn in Lumberton, North Carolina to rest. Two weeks later, his body was found in a swamp in McColl, South Carolina. Jordan was not identified until two weeks later due to extreme decomposition. Shortly after, the famous basketball player would announce his retirement with the statement “Made me realize how short life is, how quickly things can end, how innocently” when speaking about his father.

It didn’t take investigators long to figure out who was involved in the murder of James Jordan. Larry Demery testified that he and Daniel Green spotted the Red sports car, the one Michael Jordan had recently bought for his father in Chicago. The court ruled back then that Green shot Jordan to death while he was asleep in his car and stole the Red Lexus SC400. Green and Demery later realized that they had shot Michael Jordan’s father when they found two NBA championship rings and many other items. They were traced and captured easily by authorities because they had made several phone calls from the stolen car. Demery was the only one who testified in court and claimed that they intended to tie Jordan up and Green shot Jordan for no reason. Both were convicted to life imprisonment and Green never got to testify.

Fast forward to 2010, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation found that this case was one of nearly 200 that laboratory technicians mishandled and omitted evidence. In 2018, Green’s attorney found evidence that Green did not commit the murder. Every chance he got, Green would appeal his case and the judge would not grant him a hearing. Demery was approved for parole and was scheduled to be released August 2023, however this has since then been terminated.