ATLANTA. A shooting at Tuskegee University in Alabama marred the school’s 100th homecoming celebration early Sunday morning, leaving one person dead and 16 others injured. Authorities reported that a dozen of those wounded were hit by gunfire. Hours later, an arrest was made.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency identified the suspect as 25-year-old Jaquez Myrick of Montgomery, who was apprehended while leaving the scene. He was found carrying a handgun equipped with a machine gun conversion device and faces a federal charge for possession of a machine gun. However, officials did not confirm whether this weapon was used in the shooting. Further details regarding Myrick’s connection to the university or the victims have not been disclosed.
The 18-year-old fatality was confirmed to be a non-student, although some of the injured were Tuskegee students, according to authorities. In a statement, Tuskegee University shared that several of the injured individuals were being treated at East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika and Baptist South Hospital in Montgomery. Their conditions have yet to be released.
The FBI has joined the investigation, appealing to the public for tips and video footage, and has set up a dedicated website for witnesses to upload relevant material. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is also assisting in the probe, according to Macon County officials.
As the university community reels from the tragedy, Tuskegee University canceled classes for Monday and announced that grief counselors will be available for students in the university chapel. “This senseless act of violence has touched each of us, whether directly or indirectly,” said Amare’ Hardee, Tuskegee’s Student Government Association president, at a homecoming convocation on Sunday morning.
Local officials offered further insight into the incident. Tuskegee Police Chief Patrick Mardis reported that a female student sustained a gunshot wound to the stomach, while a male student was shot in the arm. Mardis described a chaotic scene as emergency responders struggled to access the area due to the crowd size: “Some idiots started shooting,” he told AL.com, adding, “You couldn’t get the emergency vehicles in there, there were so many people there.”
Macon County Coroner Hal Bentley reported that the victim’s family has been notified and that an autopsy is scheduled at the state forensic center in Montgomery. Bentley, who has served as coroner for 37 years, remarked that he does not recall shootings at previous homecoming events. “The mood around the small town of around 9,000 people was somber,” he shared.
The tragedy has sent shockwaves through Alabama’s academic and broader communities. Miles College, Tuskegee’s homecoming football opponent, issued a message of sympathy: “Today, our hearts are with the Tuskegee family as they face the tragic aftermath of the recent shooting on campus,” the college stated. “We extend our deepest condolences to those impacted and pray for healing and justice.”
The incident comes just over a year after a similar shooting at Tuskegee’s student housing complex injured four people during an “unauthorized party” in September 2023.
As a longstanding institution in Alabama, Tuskegee University has an enrollment of approximately 3,000 students and holds the distinction of being the first historically Black college designated a Registered National Landmark in 1966 and a National Historic Site in 1974. Norma Clayton, chairwoman of the board of trustees, expressed resilience amid the tragedy, stating, “We will get through this together because in tough times, tough people band together and they survive.”
Rev. James Quincy III, leading the Sunday convocation service, addressed the emotional impact of the incident: “It is in moments like these that we need to be reminded not to stand on our own understanding… I can only rely on my faith, and my prayer for our entire family, this community… that we have resilience, resilience in the time of trouble.”
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
