A tragic shooting incident occurred early Sunday at Tuskegee University in Alabama, resulting in one fatality and 16 injuries, with 12 of those being gunshot wounds, according to law enforcement officials. The deceased, an 18-year-old male, was not a student at the university, but several of the injured individuals were. As of now, no arrests have been made.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency reported that 12 individuals suffered gunshot wounds, while four others were injured in incidents not related to the shooting. The FBI has joined the investigation and is seeking assistance from the public, including any video footage that may be available. An online portal has been established for the submission of such evidence.
The incident occurred during the historically Black university’s centennial Homecoming Week. In response to the tragedy, Tuskegee University has canceled all Monday classes and will provide grief counseling services in the university’s chapel.
The university confirmed that the parents of the deceased have been informed. Several injured individuals, including Tuskegee University students, are currently receiving treatment at East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika and Baptist South Hospital in Montgomery.
An autopsy on the deceased 18-year-old is scheduled to be conducted at the state’s forensic center in Montgomery, according to Macon County Coroner Hal Bentley. Tuskegee’s Police Chief, Patrick Mardis, reported that the injured include a female student who was shot in the stomach and a male student who was shot in the arm.
The shooting occurred at the West Commons on-campus apartments. Mardis stated that city police were responding to an unrelated double shooting off campus when they received the call about the university shooting.
The university community is deeply shaken by the incident, according to Amare’ Hardee, a senior from Tallahassee, Florida, and president of the student government association. He expressed his sorrow during the school’s homecoming convocation Sunday morning.
Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, Tuskegee’s opponent for the homecoming football game, expressed their condolences in a statement. This incident follows a shooting at a Tuskegee University student housing complex just over a year ago, where four people were injured.
Tuskegee University, located about 40 miles east of Alabama’s capital city of Montgomery, has an enrollment of approximately 3,000 students. The university holds the distinction of being the first historically Black college to be designated as a Registered National Landmark in 1966 and a National Historic Site in 1974.