Man who shot and killed University of Virginia football players sentenced to 5 life terms

Former University of Virginia (UVA) student Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who shot three of the school’s football players to death in 2022, was sentenced to the maximum of five life terms, plus 23 years, on gun charges Friday.

Jones reportedly apologized to the victims’ families at the courthouse, saying, “I’m sorry. I caused so much pain,” according to Charlottesville-based outlet Cville Right Now. 

Last year, Jones pleaded guilty to the murder of D’Sean Perry, Lavel Davis Jr. and Devin Chandler, two counts of aggravated malicious wounding and five counts of use of a gun in the commission of a felony. A fourth team member, Mike Hollins, and another student, Marlee Morgan, sustained injuries.

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A booking photo released by the Henrico County Sheriff’s Office shows Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who was arrested on Nov. 14, 2022, in the fatal shooting of three football players at the University of Virginia.  (Henrico County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)

Jones previously joined the UVA football team as a walk-on true freshman in 2018 but never played in a game. After leaving the team, he remained enrolled at the university as a student. 

Then came the day of the murders. 

While riding back to campus from a school trip on a charter bus in the hours before the shooting, Jones texted an adult mentor, stating, “Tonight I’m either going to hell or jail. I’m sorry,” according to a summary prosecutors read in court Wednesday. The Associated Press obtained a draft copy of the summary.

UVA TO PAY $9 MILLION TO FAMILIES OF VICTIMS IN 2022 SHOOTING THAT KILLED 3 FOOTBALL PLAYERS, WOUNDED 2 OTHERS

Authorities said Jones opened fire aboard a charter bus as he and other students arrived back on campus after seeing a play and having dinner in Washington, D.C. 

The shooting erupted near a parking garage and prompted a 12-hour lockdown of the Charlottesville campus until the suspect was captured. Many at the school of about 23,000 students huddled inside closets and darkened dorm rooms, while others barricaded the doors of the university’s stately academic buildings.

During the rampage, Jones “methodically checked each seat until he reached the back of the bus” to shoot some of his victims, the summary said.

Within days of the shooting, university leaders asked for an outside review to investigate the school’s safety policies and procedures, its response to the violence and its prior efforts to assess the potential threat of the student charged. School officials acknowledged Jones previously was on the radar of the university’s threat assessment team.

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In June 2024, a lawyer representing some of the victims and their families, announced that the university agreed to pay $9 million in a settlement. 

Wald said the university should have removed Jones from campus before the attack because he displayed multiple red flags through erratic and unstable behavior.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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