Vigil held for UVA students Davin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., D’Sean Perry
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Thousands of University of Virginia students and community members flooded the college’s South Lawn Monday night for an emotional vigil in honor of three students killed in a shooting the night before.
Mourners lit candles and left flowers in remembrance of Davin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry, three UVA football players who were fatally shot when a gunman opened fire on the bus of their team on campus.
Their deaths left the tight-knit football team in shock and many players openly wept as mourners paid their respects to the young men killed.
“It is a void that we will feel for a long time. This team is very, very close,” former team director of player relations Jordan Bullock told The Post. « Losing one is tragic, losing three is just devastating. »
Bullock, 28, said it was heartbreaking that the victims were taken so soon and will never graduate.
He said he believed Perry was destined for greatness.
« D’Sean walked around with a curiosity about the world that would have taken him to places, » Bullock said. « I think he would have grown up to be an influential person. »
He added that the student was a « silent leader » that people gravitated toward.
« He had this ability to connect with anyone. »
Bullock said he spoke to Davis last week at a UVA basketball game.
« He looked happy. Last season he was out with an injury, » he said. « I think he was just happy to be back in the team and to to contribute. »
« Lavel was someone who always had a smile on his face, » he added.
Soccer player Chayce Chalmers, 21, a safety for Team UVA and former roommate of Chandler, was reeling from the senseless violence.
« I don’t believe it, » he told the Post of the shooting, his voice cracking. “It doesn’t seem real. It doesn’t seem real at all.
He said Chandler was a funny and passionate person who was into football and enjoyed playing video games.
« He was a great guy, » Chalmers said of his roommate.
Chalmers called Perry « iconic » and said Davis worked hard and « grew up ».
« [Perry’s] a quiet guy. He is hilarious. He was able to motivate the team,” he said, still speaking in the present tense. « He’s iconic, man. »
The footballer said the three men were like a family who shared a special bond.
« They were my brothers, my teammates, » Chalmers said. « I worked my tail with them, I cried with them. »
Another player expressed similar connections to the victims.
« I will miss them very much and love them very much, » tight end Henry Duke told The Post.
Police arrested UVA student Christopher Darnell Jones Jr. and charged him with three counts of second-degree murder. He is being held in Henrico prison.
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