Father and son, 18, killed in graduation ceremony named and pictured

07 June 2023 , 13:10

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An 18-year-old who had just graduated and his father were killed in a shooting Tuesday after a high school graduation ceremony on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus, Richmond police said.

A father and son have been named and pictured as the victims of the mass shooting at a graduation ceremony.

Tameeka Jackson-Smith told NBC News her son, Shawn Jackson, 18, and her husband, Renzo Smith, 36, were killed in the shooting that took place on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus on Tuesday after a high school graduation ceremony.

Suspect Amari Pollard, 19, was charged on Wednesday morning on two counts of second-degree murder, Colette McEachin, Richmond’s top prosecutor, said.

Ms Jackson-Smith said the family had watched the graduation, then become separated in a large crowd after they walked outside.

“He was so happy — oh my God — because he got to graduate. He worked hard,” she said.

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She said she was walking towards her husband and son in a nearby park to reunite when she saw a man run up behind them and start shooting.

The shooting erupted around 5:15 p.m. across from Virginia Commonwealth University’s Altria Theate (Facebook)

“I don’t know if he was shooting at everybody because so many people got shot all over in the area. There were like seven people on the ground,” she said.

Gunfire erupted during the ceremony as graduates ran from the chaos. Five people were also injuried while the father and son later died from their injuries

At least 12 others were injured or treated for anxiety in the aftermath of the gunfire, according to police, with people who had attended the ceremony and many others in the surrounding area fleeing in panic.

“As they heard the gunfire, it was obviously chaos,” Mr Edwards said. “We had hundreds of people in Monroe Park, so people scattered. It was very chaotic at the scene.

“This should have been a safe space. People should have felt safe at a graduation.

“It’s just incredibly tragic that someone decided to bring a gun to this incident and rain terror on our community.”

Shawn Jackson had just graduated when he was fatally shot

The suspect, Pollard, was ordered to be held without bail. Police believe the suspect knew at least one of the victims.

Pollard said he intends to hire a lawyer, so the court continued the case until a hearing later this month, she said.

Multiple handguns were recovered. Police initially said two suspects were detained, but Mr Edwards said later that they determined one of them was not involved.

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Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney vowed that anyone responsible would face justice.

“This should not be happening anywhere,” Mr Stoney said.

Officers inside the theatre, where the graduation ceremony for Huguenot High School had been taking place, heard gunfire around 5.15pm (10.15pm BST) and radioed to police stationed outside, who found multiple victims, Mr Edwards said.

Police vehicles arrive at the scene of a shooting Tuesday, June 6, in Richmond, Virginia (AP)

People scatter from a shooting scene as police arrive at the theatre (AP)

School board member Jonathan Young told Richmond TV station WWBT that graduates and other attendees were leaving the building when they heard about 20 gunshots in rapid succession.

“That prompted, as you would expect, hundreds of persons in an effort to flee the gunfire to return to the building,” Mr Young said.

“It materialised in a stampede.”

On Tuesday evening, Virginia Commonwealth President Michael Rao tweeted: "Graduations should be times of happiness and celebration. Today’s shooting is heart-wrenching and shocking."

Lucy Williamson