Alleged campus melee shooter being held without bond
A Virginia Union University student is back in class after being shot twice last month during what authorities called a melee on campus.
The man accused of shooting him isn't going anywhere in the near future.
"He's just thankful that he's alive," the victim's father said of his son, who returned to classes Monday using crutches to hobble around campus.
The father spoke yesterday outside a Richmond courtroom after a judge ordered the alleged shooter held without bond.
The father spoke on the condition that neither he nor his son be identified. He said his son, a Virginia Union sophomore, remains fearful after being struck Aug. 30 by two bullets, in the left ankle and left thigh.
His father said doctors told them the bullet in the thigh shattered the femur in "about a hundred pieces." A steel rod has been inserted into the leg, but the young man's recovery prospects are uncertain.
"He was here for a football scholarship," the father said, "but that's kind of shot now. He really loves football. He's devastated, but he also knows he's fortunate."
The father went to Richmond Circuit Court yesterday to sit in the gallery during a bond hearing for Jimar Lee Jewell, who has been held since his arrest shortly after the shooting on charges of malicious wounding and use of a firearm in a felony.
A Richmond General District Court judge set bond Friday at $15,000 but delayed imposition of that ruling to allow authorities to appeal the matter to Richmond Circuit Court.
Yesterday morning, Circuit Judge Margaret P. Spencer sided with Chief Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Tracy Thorne-Begland, who said Jewell presents a risk because his previous convictions included one for failure to appear.
Jewell did not display any emotion as Spencer ordered him held without bond and set Oct. 22 for a preliminary hearing in the case.
Thorne-Begland said the shooting occurred during "a large melee" on campus and stemmed from an earlier argument at a convenience store near Virginia Union that pitted some students against some of Jewell's friends and cousins -- but not Jewell.
Thorne-Begland said Jewell fired up to four shots with a .40-caliber handgun.
"He went to Virginia Union University to exact revenge for a fight where his cousins got the short end of the stick," Thorne-Begland said.
The shooting victim's father said his son did not know Jewell.
Jewell, who is not a Virginia Union student, is a nephew of Richmond City Councilman E. Martin Jewell.
Contact Joe Macenka at (804) 649-6804 or
.
Advertisement
Reader Reactions
If found guilty, I hope that Jewell will be required to pay for the remainder of his victims education considering that the victim was enrolled at VUU on a scholarship. More so however, I hope the victim recovers well enough to play ball and use his scholarship as he intended. Those losers that do not wish to educate themselves, have no business stepping foot on a college campus. How embarrassing that the punk would commit this crime at his Uncle Marty’s alma mater!
Are college campuses becoming more dangerous? This story and the one on the Yale Student are glaring examples of the increasing bizarre crimes happening in places that previously were thought of as safe havens. While these situations may not have been predictable, area schools like VCU, UR, and VUU HAVE to do a better job of ensuring that those working on a college campus are worthy of the trust placed in them. Are our colleges doing a good job of checking out faculty and staff so that drug addicts, sexual predators, and the like aren’t put in positions with access to vulnerable students? What if a parent discovered that their daughter’s teacher was a drug addict, who preyed on female students, and regularly escaped punishment for unethical behavior out of the classroom? This is worth investigating in light of stories such on the one on former VCU police chief (and many other stories that probably haven’t been yet reported.)
Post a Comment(Requires free registration)
- Please avoid offensive, vulgar, or hateful language.
- Respect others.
- Use the "Flag Comment" link when necessary.
- See the Terms and Conditions for details.
Advertisement