UVA shooter given max penalty of 5 life sentences
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Andrea Adelson
The man who pleaded guilty to shooting and killing Virginia football players Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry three years ago was sentenced to life in prison Friday, following a weeklong sentencing hearing in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Judge Cheryl Higgins sentenced Christopher Darnell Jones Jr. to the maximum allowable penalty of five life sentences, plus 23 years, for the murders of Chandler, Davis and Perry, plus the wounding of running back Mike Hollins and track athlete Marlee Morgan.
Jones opened fire on a charter bus after returning to campus following a class field trip to Washington, D.C., on Nov. 13, 2022. Last year, Jones pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated malicious wounding and five counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Hollins and Morgan were among those who testified during the sentencing hearing, along with members of the players’ families, Hollins’ mother, the professor who organized the field trip and others on the bus.
Jones offered an apology to the families following closing arguments. According to Cville Right Now, Jones told the courtroom, “I’m so sorry. I caused so much pain.”
Several of Jones’ family members also testified on his behalf, in addition to friends and a high school mentor. Cville Right Now reported that family members testified Jones had an abusive childhood and mental illness.
After the sentencing, Hollins spoke with reporters outside the courthouse and said, “Knowing that he has been given a time and justice has been served for the most part even though that no amount of time on this earth in jail will get those lives back, just a little bit of peace knowing the man that committed those crimes won’t be hurting anyone else.”
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Jake Trotter
A UAB football player stabbed two of his teammates Saturday morning at the football facility ahead of the Blazers’ home game against USF, a university spokesperson told ESPN.
The suspect has been arrested, and both injured players are in stable condition after being taken to UAB hospital. The school has not released the names of any of the players involved.
UAB’s game against USF began as scheduled at 3 p.m. ET.
A UAB official said an investigation is ongoing.
“UAB’s top priority remains the safety and well-being of all of our students,” the school said in a statement.
Ohio State wide receivers Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith are not expected to play against Rutgers on Saturday due to lower-body injuries, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Tate will miss his third straight game. Smith played in last week’s win over UCLA but missed the second half after being seen limping before halftime. Both are considered day-to-day, sources said, ahead of a potential return next week against rival Michigan.
On Tuesday, coach Ryan Day would not rule out either wide receiver but also did not want to go into specifics on their availability.
“Our policy is we don’t discuss specifics on injuries, and once you start going down a little bit here, a little bit there, you can create a problem,” Day said. “So for a number of reasons, we don’t discuss those things.”
Smith leads the Big Ten and ranks third in the nation with 10 touchdown catches while ranking third in the conference in receiving yards per game (90.2) and second in catches per game (6.9). Tate is fifth in the Big Ten with 88.9 receiving yards per game.
Brandon Inniss started in place of Tate against UCLA and led No. 1 Ohio State with six catches for 30 yards during a 48-10 win.
The 5-5 Scarlet Knights are looking to beat Ohio State for the first time in their 11th try since joining the Big Ten in 2014.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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