On the night of November 13, 2022, a mass shooting occurred aboard a chartered bus at the University of Virginia (UVA) in Charlottesville, Virginia, as the vehicle returned from a class trip to Washington, D.C. Students had traveled to see a play about Emmett Till as part of a class on African American playwrights. Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., then 22, was not enrolled in that class but had joined the trip because he was taking a separate social justice course taught by the same professor.
Jones sent text messages to family members before the trip's return, telling them he loved them and that "something would happen today." On the bus, he sat largely apart from others, was heard talking quietly to himself, and about two hours before the shooting sent messages to an adult mentor referencing contacting a criminal defense attorney and alleging that a group of football players had been "messing with him all day." Shortly before opening fire, Jones had a brief conversation with Lavel Davis Jr. about video games before drawing a Glock handgun. Witnesses reported he shouted a profanity-laced accusation that people had been "fucking with" him before shooting began around 10:15 p.m. He fatally shot Davis, D'Sean Perry, and Devin Chandler — all members of the UVA football team — and wounded two other students, including football player Mike Hollins. All three deceased victims had been shot in the head. Jones then fled the bus and the campus area, discarding a jacket, hoodie, ammunition magazines, and rounds near a library building before escaping toward his vehicle.
A shelter-in-place order was issued and remained active for roughly 12 hours during a multi-agency manhunt. Jones was located by an officer recognizing his vehicle and was taken into custody in Henrico County at 11:24 a.m. on November 14, 2022.
Jones had previously been the subject of a UVA hazing investigation that closed when witnesses declined to cooperate, and in September 2022 university officials had investigated a report that he possessed a gun, though the reporting individual had not personally seen it; a prior concealed-weapon violation from February 2021 was also known to investigators.
Jones was charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of using a handgun in a felony, with two counts of malicious wounding added two days later. He was denied bond. On November 20, 2024, he pleaded guilty to an expanded set of 13 charges, including six counts of aggravated murder. On November 21, 2025, following a week-long sentencing hearing, Judge Cheryl Higgins sentenced Jones to five life sentences plus 23 years; he was to be transferred to Red Onion State Prison.
The university canceled classes, held vigils and a joint memorial service attended by roughly 9,000 people, and several scheduled UVA sporting events were canceled in the aftermath. Public officials, including then-President Joe Biden and Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, issued statements of condolence.
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