UVA Students Killed in Shooting Were 'Wonderful People,' Devastated Friends and Community Says

Following the fatal shootings at the University Virginia, many of those who knew the victims are sharing memories of them and showing support for their loved ones.

Three UVA students and football players died after authorities say another student and former football player shot them while they were returning from seeing a play as part of a class field trip to Washington D.C.

Those killed were Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., and D’Sean Perry.

Following the tragedy, a vigil was held on campus with thousands of students and community members, honoring those lives lost, according to the New York Post.

The UVA football team's former director of relations Jordan Bullock spoke to the New York Post. 

“It’s a void that we will feel for a long time. This team is very, very close,” said Bullock. “To lose one is tragic, to lose three is just devastating.” 

Devin Chandler was a wide receiver for the UVA football team and was from Huntersville, North Carolina. He went to a college in Wisconsin before making his way to the UVA campus, according to his athletic profile.

While at UVA he had decided to major in American Studies, according to his professor, Jack Hamilton. 

After the tragedy, Hamilton took to Twitter to share kind words about Chandler. 

Chandler was described as “an unbelievably nice person, always a huge smile, really gregarious and funny. one of those people who's just impossible not to like,” said Hamilton in a tweet.

Lavel Davis Jr. was also a wide receiver for the team and had made it onto the Comeback Player of the Year watch list earlier this year. Davis was from Dorchester, South Carolina, and was a junior at UVA, according to his athletic profile.

Hamilton also had the pleasure of having Davis as a student.

“One thing that struck me about [Davis] was how much his classmates liked him and vice versa. in my experience star athletes often tend to hang out with other athletes (understandable, given the time commitment) but vel seemed to go out of his way to make friends with non-athletes,” said Hamilton in a tweet. 

A family friend of Davis, Heather Mitchell, started a GoFundMe on behalf of his mother and shared more about the type of young man Davis was.

“He worked hard coming back from two injuries to be one of the best college football players in the country. He was a rising star (both on and off the field) and the world was seeing what we all had known for a long time, that he was a talented one of a kind kid,” said Mitchell.

D’Sean Perry was a linebacker for the school and was from Miami, Florida, where he went to Gulliver Prep for high school, according to his athletic profile.

President of Gulliver Prep, Cliff Kling, shared his memories of Perry as a student and mentor.

“After you had an encounter with him, you were better for it. He was a bright mind, caring heart,” said Kling, according to Local 10.com.

Kling also shared how even after Perry had graduated, he would still take time to come back and help mentor students in school and with football, Local 10.com reported. 

Bulluck described Perry as a silent leader that people gravitated toward and he believed he was destined for greatness, according to the New York Post.

“D’Sean walked around with a curiosity of the world that would have taken him places,” Bullock told the New York Post. “I think he would have grown up to be an influential person.”

Along with the three young men lost, two were injured and were transported to the UVA Medical Center but their identities remain anonymous for their privacy, UVA Police Chief Timothy Longo said at a press conference. 

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