A tragic shooting incident unfolded at Tuskegee University’s centennial homecoming celebrations early Sunday, November 10, leaving one young man dead and injuring 16 others. The incident has prompted the Alabama-based university to implement immediate security measures.
La’Tavion Johnson, an 18-year-old not enrolled at the university, was the unfortunate casualty, reportedly killed while trying to protect a female student from the gunfire at a party in West Commons, an apartment complex on campus.
The incident took place around 1:40 a.m., with students assembled on the campus of the historically Black university in Tuskegee, Alabama, situated about 39 miles east of Montgomery. Among the 16 injured, 12 were gunshot victims, while four others suffered injuries amidst the ensuing panic. Two students were shot – one female with abdominal injuries and a male wounded in the arm.
Witnesses reported that the sound of gunfire seemed to originate from multiple firearms, suggesting a possible crossfire situation.
Police arrested 25-year-old Jaquez Myrick of Montgomery, Alabama, who was caught leaving the crime scene armed with a handgun fitted with a machine gun conversion device.
The shooting occurred as the homecoming celebrations were drawing to a close. Earlier that day, Alumni Stadium, with an official capacity of 10,000, was overflowing with more than 47,300 spectators for the university’s homecoming football match against Miles College.
In the aftermath of the incident, Tuskegee University President Dr. Mark A. Brown announced immediate changes to security protocols. The campus will no longer function as an open facility, requiring students and faculty to display identification badges while on campus. The university has also replaced its head of campus security.
Tuskegee Police Chief Patrick Mardis stated, “Some idiots started shooting. You couldn’t get the emergency vehicles in there, there were so many people there.”
The university suspended classes for the following Monday and Tuesday, providing in-person and online counseling services to students and staff. A town hall meeting is planned to address the concerns of the community.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Bureau of Investigation is spearheading the investigation, coordinating with federal, state, and local authorities, including the FBI and ATF.
This is the second mass shooting incident at Tuskegee University in recent years. In September 2023, a shooting at a student housing complex left four people injured.