In the fall of 2021, the campus of Grambling State University was shaken by a string of violent acts. In the midst of this, a young man named Damarius Murphy, a 19-year-old African American, lost his life. On October 13, 2021, Murphy, who was not a student at the university, was shot and killed on the university grounds. Another individual, a 16-year-old, was also injured in the shooting.
Both Murphy and the injured teen were from Rayville, Louisiana.
The shooting was one of two fatal incidents that occurred on the campus within a four-day period, casting a dark shadow over the university's homecoming week. The violence prompted the university to cancel the remaining homecoming events and implement a campus-wide curfew in an effort to ensure the safety of its students and staff.
In the wake of the shooting, law enforcement began an investigation that quickly led to a person of interest. Two days after the incident, authorities identified Jatavious 'Rabbit' Carroll, an 18-year-old from Delhi, Louisiana, as a suspect. The search for Carroll culminated in his arrest on December 28, 2021, following a five-hour standoff at a residence in Delhi.
Carroll was subsequently charged with the second-degree murder of Damarius Murphy. In connection with the same incident, he also faced a charge of attempted second-degree murder for the injury of the 16-year-old and possession of a firearm on school property. The university community was left to mourn the loss of a young life and grapple with the violence that had disrupted their campus.
