On November 13, 2022 a student at the University of Virginia left three players of the university’s football team dead along with two others injured. The killer’s name is Christopher Darnell Jones Jr. who was accused with second-degree murder and three counts of using a handgun in the alleged commission of a felony in the deaths of the victims, D’Sean Perry, Devin Chandler, and Lavel Davis Jr.

All three gentlemen were juniors at the university. Perry was a linebacker on the football team from Miami, Florida. Chandler played at the wide receiver position residing in Virginia Beach. Davis Jr. was from South Carolina and was also a wide receiver and saw the field often. He was a key contributor to the team with 16 receptions for 371 yards and two touchdowns.

The murderer, Jones, is 22 years old and was taken into custody on the next morning just before 11 a.m. by Hernico County Police in Richmond. He is a former member of the Cavalier football team and was listed on the 2018 roster as a freshman. He was said to have been a loner and quiet kid while on the team. He stayed to himself during the practices, drills, and while the team lifted.
The shooting occurred during a bus ride home at 10:30 p.m. from one of the university’s school plays. Gunfire was reported by Culbreth Road in the parking garage near the school’s drama building. The bus had been previously coming back from a school trip to see a play in Washington D.C.

A manhunt was ordered by the school’s officials and the campus was issued warnings to “RUN HIDE FIGHT” while sheltering in place. The shelter-in-place was in effect until around 10:30 a.m. the following morning when the officials eliminated the possibility of the suspect being around any other students.

According to NBC News, the mother of the suspected shooter is named Margo Ellis. They stated, “her son lived with his grandmother” and “she did not know his whereabouts or what might have contributed to the shooting.”

Police Chief Timothy Longo said that in September of this year the Office of Student Affairs received information that Jones had made comments about possessing a gun. The office flagged the comment to a multidisciplinary threat assessment team affiliated with the school. Longo stated that Jones’ owning a gun was “not made in conjunction with any threats.”
The office talked with the person who brought up the concern, Jones’s roommate, who stated that he hadn’t actually seen the physical weapon. It is still unclear how the matter was resolved after that.

While still searching for any evidence as to what was Jones’s motive for the shootings, a girl by the name of Ryan Lynch, a student at the university, came out and talked as a witness of the event. Lynch stated to the Washington Post that she heard Jones say something along the lines of “You guys are always messing with me” to the victims before opening fire. There have been rumors that Jones was bullied by teammates while playing for the team, but nothing has been confirmed by any sources.
After the horrible event that weekend, the school canceled classes for the following couple of days in order for the students to recuperate and recover mentally.
The community has reached out and supported the families involved with the shootings by creating GoFundMe’s for all of those affected. In addition, the NCAA has given all Virginia Cavalier football players one extra year of playing eligibility.