Oregon prosecutors said that a FedEx driver had acted in self-defense after reacting to another man's violence and "racist vitriol" by a fatal blow.(Photo: Tim Boyle Getty Images)

Oregon prosecutors said that a FedEx driver had acted in self-defense after reacting to another man's violence and "racist vitriol" by a fatal blow.

Timothy Warren will not be prosecuted for hitting Joseph Magnuson on Sept. 26 in Portland, Multnomah County Attorney Rod Underhill. announced Monday.

Magnuson, who was in poor health, died later in the alleged homicide. However, the investigation revealed no indication that Warren intended to kill Magnuson.

A disagreement over the speed with which Warren drove his FedEx delivery truck led to the showdown, prosecutors said. The investigation revealed that Magnuson had initiated and aggravated the situation, believing that Warren was driving too fast. A memo published by the prosecutor's office quotes testimonies claiming that Warren was traveling at a safe speed.

The investigation revealed that Magnuson had acted aggressively, repeatedly provoking racial slurs against Warren and then striking him in a clash.

A memo issued by the prosecutor's office says that Warren's actions were "in-kind" with Magnuson's escalation. Witnesses testified that Warren had tried to discuss the issue before things got violent and that he seemed "exhausted".

Warren punched Magnuson "only once above the left eye, knocking Mr. Magnuson down and making him lose consciousness briefly," a statement said.

November 22nd: A man arrested after an anti-Semitic speech in the plane, saying: "All Jews raise their hands"

November, 1st: A woman from Indiana would have left a racist note saying "it's a white neighborhood"

The injury caused by the punch was "superficial and not fatal," Adam Gibbs, Deputy Attorney General, is quoted in the statement. However, the fall of Magnuson as a result of the punch aggravated the pre-existing conditions, resulting in his death, the authorities discovered.

While Warren could have withdrawn from the alleged abuses and probably could have prevented Magnuson's death by doing so, the solicitor's memo states that Warren had no legal obligation to leave the situation.

"Mr. Warren had the right to get out of his vehicle and verbally challenge the way Mr. Magnuson spoke to him," Gibbs' memo reads.

A FedEx Ground statement on the incident released today in the United States today reads as follows: "FedEx Ground has fully cooperated with the forces of order at the time of the incident. 39, investigating this unfortunate incident. We send our condolences to all those affected. "

According to the statement, the company would not comment on Warren's current employment status: "We do not share the details regarding the staff of the contracted service providers".

Contribute: The Associated Press

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