The University of Virginia will pay $9 million in a settlement with families of victims of a 2022 shooting on the school’s campus that left three university football players dead and two other students injured, lawyers representing some of the victims and their families announced Friday.
The school will pay $2 million each to the families of DeShawn Perry, Devin Chandler and LaVell Davis Jr., the maximum allowed under Virginia law, according to Kimberly Wald, an attorney representing some of the families.
Two injured students, a fourth member of the football team, Mike Hollins and Marley Morgan, will also be paid a total of $3 million.
But some family members remain unconvinced and are calling for the immediate release of an independent investigation into the shooting, completed last year, that focused on the university’s efforts to assess the potential threat posed by the student suspect ultimately charged with murder, and any recommendations based on the facts that emerged from that investigation.
Murder charge upgraded in shooting death of University of Virginia football player
University of Virginia football players Devin Chandler, LaVell Davis Jr. and DeSean Perry; (University of Virginia Athletics)
Police identified the suspect as Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., a University of Virginia student and former member of the school’s football team.
Wald, who represents Perry’s estate, said the suspect showed multiple warning signs with his erratic and erratic behavior and the university should have removed him from campus before the attack.
“This settlement is just one step for these families. There is much more to be done,” Wald said. “If there is one lesson to be learned from this report, we need to know it now. We need to save lives now.”
University officials delayed releasing the report last year over concerns it could affect the suspect’s upcoming trial.
“We are committed to providing this information as soon as we are certain that it will not impede the criminal proceedings,” University of Virginia President Jim Ryan said at the time.
Wald said the settlement was negotiated out of court and did not follow the filing of a lawsuit, but all settlements in Virginia must be approved by a judge, and the settlement was approved by an Albemarle County Circuit Court judge on Friday afternoon.
The university said in a statement that the agreement has also been approved by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares.
University of Virginia football player Michael Hollins Jr. is one of two survivors of the shooting that also killed three of his teammates. (Virginia Cavaliers Official Athletic Site)
University of Virginia President Robert Hardy and Chancellor Ryan said in a statement Friday that the lives of the three students who died were “tragically cut short” and that the victims “will always be in our hearts.”
“We will forever remember the impact Devin, LaBelle and DeShawn had on our community, and we are grateful for the ways they stood before us in the classroom, on the football field and uplifted the University of Virginia,” the statement said.
Authorities said the shooting happened as the suspect was returning to campus on a charter bus from a field trip to see a play in Washington.
The incident began near a parking lot and sparked panic, leading to a 12-hour lockdown of the campus until a suspect was taken into custody. Jones Jr. is scheduled to stand trial in January on murder and other charges.
In the days after the shooting, university officials called for an outside investigation to examine campus safety policies and procedures, the university’s response to the shooting, and efforts made so far to assess the suspect’s potential threat. University officials acknowledged that Jones Jr. had previously been under the watch of the university’s threat assessment team.
The university initially planned to release the report, completed in October, in November but changed its stance due to concerns that it could affect the suspect’s trial.
University of Virginia shooting survivor speaks out for first time since three football teammates killed on bus: ‘I lost a brother’
University of Virginia Police have released a photo of Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who has been named as the suspect in a shooting that occurred on the University of Virginia campus on Nov. 13, 2022. (University of Virginia Police/Twitter)
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Perry’s mother said Friday that the report should be released now if it can help prevent similar shootings.
“As a mother, I want to know what happened. It’s my right to know what happened,” Happy Perry told reporters. “At this point, it’s a matter of public safety and national security for us to get that information.”
Hollins’ mother said she had mixed emotions after Friday’s settlement, and also described how the victim’s entire family is devastated and changed.
“You can put a smile on your face and stay positive all day,” Brenda Hollins says, “but then anxiety starts to creep in and, if you don’t address it in the moment, it’ll consume you.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
