Three Virginia football players dead in shooting; suspect arrested is former walk-on, police say
Three University of Virginia football players are dead after a shooting on campus late Sunday and a former walk-on player on the team is in custody, charged with three counts of second-degree murder, police said Monday.
Receivers Devin Chandler and Lavel Davis and linebacker D’Sean Perry were killed in the incident, which occurred on a bus full of students returning from a field trip to see a play in Washington, D.C., university president Jim Ryan told a news conference.
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Two other students injured in the shooting are in the hospital, one in good condition and one critical, Ryan said. Their names have not been released.
Police confirmed they have arrested Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who was previously a walk-on on the football team. He was taken into custody after fleeing the scene. Police also got arrest warrants charging him with three counts of using a handgun in the commission of a felony.
Henrico (Va.) Police said they took Jones into custody and are assisting university police with the investigation.
Please see the attached news release regarding the arrest of Christopher Darnell Jones, Jr., in Henrico County. pic.twitter.com/en4K0uhhag
— Henrico Police (@HenricoPolice) November 14, 2022
Jones, who is from Petersburg, Va., is listed on Virginia’s athletics website as being a walk-on running back in 2018, though he didn’t appear in any games. Ryan said Jones remained a student but had not been on the football team for more than a year.
Timothy Longo, chief of campus police, said Chandler and Perry died inside the bus while Davis died after being transported to the hospital.
“This is an unimaginably sad day for our community,” Ryan said. “The entire university community is grieving this morning. My heart is broken for the victims and their families and for all of those who knew and loved them. And they are all in my prayers. When I see our students, I see my own kids. And I cannot imagine anything worse for a parent than to lose a child. Please know that we will do everything we can to honor their lives and will come together soon as a community to mourn these losses.”
Police issued a shelter-in-place order around 10:40 p.m. ET Sunday night, after responding to an incident at the Culbreth parking garage on campus. The order was lifted around 10:30 a.m. ET Monday after
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Longo said the university learned of a prior criminal incident off campus with a concealed weapon involving Jones in February 2021. He was required to report that to campus police and did not, Longo said. That matter was still pending adjudication through the university judiciary council.
Longo also said someone unaffiliated with the university reported to the multidisciplinary threat assessment team in September that Jones made a comment about possessing a gun, though police were not able to confirm he had a firearm. Longo said the comment about Jones owning a gun was not made in conjunction with any threats.
Perry, 22, was a fourth-year student from Miami who’d appeared in 15 games in his career. He was a linebacker who moved to defensive end earlier in the season due to a few absences up front. He made four tackles and a tackle for a loss in his first game there against Old Dominion.
Davis was a third-year from Richville, S.C., a 6-foot-7 force who burst on the scene as a true freshman in 2020 with 515 receiving yards and five touchdowns. He tore an ACL that kept him out all of 2021 but returned this year to catch 16 passes for 371 yards in eight games.
Chandler was a second-year from Virginia Beach who transferred to UVa in 2021 after spending a year at Wisconsin.
“I cannot find the words to express the devastation and heartache that our team is feeling today after the tragic events last night that resulted in the deaths of Lavel, D’Sean and Devin, and the others who were injured,” Virginia football coach Tony Elliot said in a statement. “These were incredible young men with huge aspirations and extremely bright futures. Our hearts ache for their families, their classmates and their friends. These precious young men were called away too soon. We are all fortunate to have them be a part of our lives. They touched us, inspired us and worked incredibly hard as representatives of our program, university and community. Rest in peace, young men.”
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Virginia athletic director Carla Williams added: “I pray for peace, comfort and hope for their parents and loved ones. For their teammates, coaches and friends, I pray for strength and a peach that surpasses all understanding.”
Wisconsin said in a release that it is offering support services to its players. “(Chandler) had a lasting impact on his teammates, even after he left UW, which is a testament to the type of person he was,” Wisconsin interim coach Jim Leonhard said in a statement.
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said the conference was “heartbroken and devastated over the tragedy” while Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry also offered support.
“You have our love and support,” Pry tweeted. “We are with you.”
— The ACC (@theACC) November 14, 2022
There is no timeline on a decision regarding whether Virginia will play its home game against Coastal Carolina on Saturday, a source with knowledge of the situation told The Athletic.
“The news of the tragic deaths of students from the University of Virginia … has stunned and saddened all of us,” Coastal Carolina president Michael T. Benson said in a statement. “It’s important that we place our scheduled game at UVA this Saturday in the proper context and focus our efforts on supporting and grieving with our colleagues and friends in Charlottesville.”
(Photo of D’Sean Perry, Devin Chandler and Lavel Davis courtesy of the University of Virginia)
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