Amarion Collins, a 17-year-old Black male known to friends and family as “Mari,” was a student and athlete at Manor High School in Portsmouth, Virginia. He was regarded as a “special athlete but also a solid student” by the school’s athletic department. A childhood friend, Jaron Ratliff, who grew up playing sports with him, remembered the pain of his loss, saying, “It just hurts to see one of my teammates, one of my friends, go away at a young age.”
On the afternoon of
January 19, 2022, tragedy struck. At about 3 p.m., after classes had been dismissed for the day, a shooting occurred on Cherokee Road near the high school. Amarion was struck by a bullet and sustained a life-threatening gunshot wound. He was rushed to a local hospital, but he did not survive his injuries. While the incident did not take place on school property, its proximity sent shockwaves through the community.
The police investigation moved quickly. The morning after the shooting, authorities arrested 18-year-old Kwendale Glenn. He was charged with first-degree murder, use of a firearm, conspiracy to commit murder, and possession of a firearm on school property. Later that same day, police took a minor into custody in connection with the crime. The final suspect, 19-year-old Melvon D. Parker, was arrested on January 21 and faced the same set of charges.
The sudden violence and loss of a student deeply affected Manor High School. The principal notified families that instruction would be held asynchronously the following day to allow the community to process the event. A scheduled basketball game was canceled, and grief counselors were made available to support students and staff. The school division also directed families to its mental health webpage for resources to help children cope with loss, anxiety, and feelings of isolation. As of the arrests in January 2022, the case against the three individuals charged in Amarion's death was proceeding through the legal system.
