Tuskegee University has announced it is closing its campus to outsiders after a Sunday shooting that left 1 dead and 16 injured.
The one person who died in the shooting has been identified as 18-year-old La’Tavion Johnson, who was not a student.
“The Tuskegee University community is heartbroken by what happened on our campus Sunday morning,” Mark Brown, president and CEO of Tuskegee University said during a news conference on Monday, according to ABC News.
Anyone entering campus must wear a school-issued identification badge and have authorized permission.
Here’s what is required to be on campus right now
“Tuskegee University is no longer an open campus,” Brown said. “Effective immediately, we require IDs for everyone to be displayed to enter campus and worn at all times while on campus.”
The HBCU also fired its campus security chief before conducting a full review of security measures.
“Our new campus security chief and ultimately his team will complete a full review, including all implementations of new security procedures,” Brown added.
The shooting occurred despite several security measures taken by the university, according to Brown. These included hiring 70 additional law enforcement officers to be on-site, notifying attendees that weapons and drugs are prohibited on campus and visitors only being able to wear clear bags.
“We did entry checks at all officially sponsored events, some random and some 100% checks,” he said. “However, the general campus remained open and we did not, nor could we, have planned for security at an event that was not approved in advance or officially sanctioned by the university.”
“Nonetheless, it happened on our campus and we take full responsibility,” Brown added.
One person is in custody, but they have not been charged in the shootings themselves
Law enforcement has taken one person into custody, 25-year-old Jaquez Myrick, as he tried to leave campus after the shooting. He is facing federal charges for possession of a handgun with a machine gun conversion device. However, no suspect has been charged and the investigation is still ongoing. As ABC News reported, “State police have yet to determine if Myrick was one of the gunmen who opened fire.”
“I want to say one thing to the people that were shooting: We’re going to make sure we find you,” Macon County Sheriff Andre Brunson told the news outlet. “We’re not going to let them disrupt what we do here in Tuskegee.”
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