Former Pharmacy security guard acquitted in fatal shooting outside East Nashville restaurant

A Davidson County jury returned a verdict of not guilty against Nathan Glass, the former security guard police developed as a suspect in the 2018 shooting of DeAngelo Knox outside The Pharmacy restaurant in East Nashville, attorney David Raybin said.

The verdict came Friday afternoon after a week-long trial.

Raybin and his son Ben Raybin acted as co-counsel to David Veile, a former police officer who was lead attorney on the case.

"Five years ago the correct decision was made not to charge Mr. Glass," David Raybin told The Tennessean Friday. "He was then charged with murder. Today's verdict is a vindication of Nathan Glass and assistant district attorney Pam Anderson."

"I think Mr. Glass and his family appreciate the verdict and the hard work of the jury, (who) obviously gave a lot of attention to it," Raybin added. "I think that armed security guards for restaurants, churches and schools are important. And I think the jury found Mr. Glass was just doing his job protecting the people that are in the store."

Raybin said Anderson was fired after declining to seek charges against Glass, who Raybin said was acting in defense of patrons at The Pharmacy Burger Parlor & Beer Garden.

Knox was fatally shot on Oct. 2, 2018 after a shootout near the intersection of W. Eastland and McFerrin Avenues, the corner where both Mas Tacos and The Pharmacy Burger Parlor & Beer Garden sit.

At the time, Glass was a security guard at The Pharmacy. Prosecutors said that Knox was involved in a shootout with another person in a car in The Pharmacy’s parking lot, and he was fleeing and returning fire at the other car before Glass shot him, the Associated Press reported.

Glass’ attorneys argued that his shooting at 25-year-old Knox was justified.

Patrons who witnessed the incident testified this week they feared for their lives, Raybin said.

Glass was admitted into the police academy before the shooting. After the shooting, he was hired as an officer for the Metro Nashville Police Department when the DA’s office initially determined prosecutors couldn’t overcome his self defense claim.

He was indicted on a second-degree murder charge in November 2020.

Glass resigned as an officer in late 2021, with disciplinary action pending from his department, as police investigators cited the grand jury's indictment.

Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on X @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to www.tennessean.com.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Ex-Pharmacy guard acquitted in fatal Nashville restaurant shooting