A Message From the President

To the UVA community:

I am writing to share materials related to the external review of the shooting that took place on UVA Grounds on Nov. 13, 2022, including two reports stemming from those reviews, an executive summary of the reports, and a list of actions the University has taken to improve public safety following those events. The executive summary fully describes the focus of each of the reports, as well as the process that went into their development and release. The remainder of this email provides a brief summary and a few key points.

As many members of our community remember firsthand, we experienced a devastating tragedy on Nov. 13, 2022, when a gunman opened fire on a group of UVA students returning from a class trip, taking the lives of Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., and D’Sean Perry, wounding Mike Hollins and Marlee Morgan, and forever altering the lives of countless others.

As we grieved the terrible losses suffered that night, we also began the process of seeking to understand the events and circumstances surrounding it. The University’s Board of Visitors and I asked the attorney general of Virginia to appoint outside counsel to conduct an independent review of the University’s actions and to make recommendations for improvements to our public safety policies and practices.

The attorney general appointed two law firms to conduct the review. These firms delivered preliminary reports to the University in October of 2023. Our initial intention was to release them fairly quickly; however, after consulting with Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley, we made the difficult decision to delay the release so as not to interfere with the criminal proceedings.

Now that Christopher Jones has pled guilty and his sentencing has been delayed until late 2025, Mr. Hingeley has withdrawn his concern. Accordingly, after sharing the reports with the families of those who were killed and the individuals who were injured that night, and giving them a chance for review, we are now ready to release the final redacted reports. We are also providing a list of actions we have taken since the shooting to strengthen our efforts to identify and respond to threats to public safety.

A note about the redactions: Universities are prohibited by federal law from disclosing student records, which is a broad category that encompasses many different types of information institutions keep about their students. The reports are redacted to protect that information from disclosure, which means significant portions of the reports themselves are inaccessible. There are also limited redactions to protect information that could impact safety and security operations. I recognize that the necessary redactions in these reports will likely make reading them a frustrating process, but we are bound by law. Federal law does permit institutions to request that individuals waive their right to keep certain information redacted. Unfortunately, despite our request, the University did not receive such a waiver from Christopher Jones, the convicted shooter. Our hope is that the accompanying executive summary will help in navigating the contents of the reports.

As president, my most important responsibility is the safety of every individual in our community and ensuring that we have the processes in place to provide for that protection. Although no one could have reasonably predicted, as the report concludes, that this violent act would occur, the report does identify areas where we can strengthen our threat assessment protocols – and in many cases, we have already done so.

As I mentioned, the materials we are releasing today include a full breakdown of the steps we have taken since November 2022, including:

• Augmenting the University’s threat-assessment function, including hiring new full-time personnel in key areas
• Including additional representatives from the University Police Division and Housing & Residence Life on UVA’s Threat Assessment Team
• Updating training and guidance for non-law enforcement personnel on how to respond to reports of a firearm in a University residence hall
• Enhancing the student Care and Support Services team and realigning it within Student Health and Wellness to enable more effective triage and response to student concerns, including making referrals to the Threat Assessment Team when necessary
• Advocating for legislation that would make it illegal to carry firearms on Virginia college campuses

Although I hope this update brings a measure of solace, I know that this information will not provide answers to all of your questions, nor does it answer all of mine. It doesn’t ease the pain of losing beloved members of our community, and it doesn’t lessen the grief felt so deeply by the victims’ family and friends. It doesn’t undo the pain and trauma of those who were injured, of those who witnessed the shooting, and of those who continue to grapple with all that has happened. I can promise that we will continue to honor and remember Devin, Lavel, and D’Sean, whose lives and legacies will never be forgotten at UVA. We will continue to support the members of our community who were most directly affected by these events. And we will do everything within our power to promote the safety of our students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

Thanks to all of you for your patience, and to those who have worked tirelessly to make our community safer and stronger since the tragic events of Nov. 13, 2022.

Best,
Jim