Nicholas Jerome Ackies, an 18-year-old male, was a promising freshman and a defensive lineman for the Norfolk State University football team. His life was tragically cut short on the evening of October 27, 2017, in Norfolk, Virginia. Police were called to the 800 block of Hayes Street for a report of a gunshot disturbance. Upon their arrival, they discovered Ackies suffering from a gunshot wound.
Despite the efforts of Norfolk Fire-Rescue medics, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation quickly led to a suspect, 22-year-old Jaquan M. Anderson, a graduate of Norfolk State University and a former member of its football team. In a surprising turn of events, it was Anderson himself who contacted the authorities after the shooting. He claimed that he had shot Ackies in self-defense, alleging that his friend had attempted to rob him. Anderson was arrested at the scene and was subsequently charged with second-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He was held in the Norfolk City Jail without bond.
Jaquan Anderson's trial for the murder of Nicholas Ackies commenced in August 2019. Throughout the legal proceedings, Anderson's defense maintained that the shooting was a justifiable act of self-defense. However, the prosecution presented a case that convinced the jury otherwise. After deliberating, the jury found Jaquan Anderson guilty of second-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Following the verdict, the jury sentenced him to 27 years in prison, bringing a somber conclusion to a case that involved two young men whose lives were irrevocably changed by a single, violent act.
