Family of man accused of shooting Lyft driver asks public to ‘reserve judgment’

The family of a man accused of shooting a Lyft driver outside a Liberty restaurant asked the public Friday to “reserve judgment.”

Police say Patrick Logan Pulse of Independence fired six times at driver Antoine Roston of Kansas City last Sunday morning. Two bullets hit Roston in the head; a third lodged below his left clavicle. He remains hospitalized.

According to police, Pulse’s girlfriend had called for a Lyft ride from the Landing Eatery & Pub in Liberty. Police said Roston and Pulse got into an argument and started fighting in the parking lot when Pulse, 28, began shooting Roston, 41, with a semi-automatic handgun.

Kirk J. McCabe, an attorney representing the Pulse family, issued this statement on Friday:

As members of the Liberty community, we join in mourning the senseless violence which took place overnight Saturday. We are doing all we can to monitor Antoine Roston’s condition and are praying for his recovery.

We will continue to search for answers as to how and why this occurred. We hope the community reserves judgment as to the causes of this incident until all the facts are known.

Our family asks for privacy during this time and request continued prayers for Antoine and his family.

— The Family of Patrick Pulse

After shooting Roston, police say, Pulse forced his girlfriend into his blood-stained Jeep and left the restaurant parking lot. Later, when he was stopped and arrested, he told police that he “f---ed up.”

Pulse is being held on $100,000 bond in Clay County. He is charged with felony assault and armed criminal action.

One of the bullets shattered Roston’s left jaw, blew a hole through his tongue and exited his right cheek. His jaw is wired shut as he continues to recover.

According to his family, Roston drove for Lyft as a means to support his luxury driving business, ZMAKC Transportation. He is also a pastor who ran a church, Rapha Temple on Linwood Boulevard, in the 2000s.

This story was originally published November 3, 2017 at 5:56 PM with the headline "Family of man accused of shooting Lyft driver asks public to ‘reserve judgment’."