On Tuesday, a grand jury declined to indict a man who shot and killed a Kentucky State University student and seriously injured another.
According to the AP, Jacob Lee Bard shot and killed De’Jon Fox Jr., 19, earlier this month when he was taking his sons out of his dormitory at Kentucky State University. Defense attorney Scott Danks said Bard was withdrawing his sons from the school because of several “armed, violent” incidents he and several other students faced. Bard’s lawyers allege that her son was being robbed in his bedroom. They suspect that the assaults started after Bard’s son reported the break-in to school officials, some of the assaults were caught on campus security cameras.
Bard was accompanied by two school officials to collect his son’s belongings on December 9. Bard and his sons were being taken out of the dormitory when a group of students wearing masks and hats rushed them and started beating them.
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“Jacob’s actions were completely justified under the law, and were the only measure that prevented his son’s death or serious injury,” the attorneys wrote. Kentucky law allows a person to use deadly force to defend themselves or another person. Bard was charged with first-degree murder and first-degree assault shortly after the incident and is being held on $1 million bond. Bard has been released from prison after a grand jury declined to indict him, and his sons are living in an undisclosed location due to death threats.
De’Jon Fox’s parents, Chardnae Cleveland and De’Jon Darrell Fox, were arrested and charged with uttering threats on Tuesday, after making threats against Jacob Bard online earlier this month. The affidavit noted that Cleveland and Fox made “concerning” statements that allegedly implied “an intent to react violently to the family of Jacob Bard.” The two turned themselves in to police on Christmas Day, and police records show they were released from jail on a $1,500 bond.
After the decision, Kentucky State officials said they would “cooperate with law enforcement and investigators as appropriate.” The school released a statement about the judges’ positive decision, saying it “doesn’t lessen the pain our community continues to feel, and it doesn’t change our priorities.”
“Our commitment is focused on supporting our students and ensuring that Kentucky State University is a safe place to learn, live and work,” he added. It is not yet clear what measures have been taken by the university to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
This is a tragedy that feels like a failure on the part of Kentucky State to adequately protect its students. Why did the alleged violence against this student reach the point where Bard felt he had to take his children out of school? How did Bard manage to have a gun on school campus? Why wasn’t campus security a more effective presence? If there really is security camera footage of the attacks before the shooting, why didn’t the school take disciplinary action? Although yes, it is really bad if De’Jon Fox Jr. and other students were attacking their peers, he didn’t deserve to die at such a young age. If the school had acted sooner, we would not have reached this point.
At a time when the Trump administration is trying to exercise control over higher education and limit college access for Black students, this kind of thing should not be happening at any school, let alone an HBCU.
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