A former University of Virginia student pleaded guilty Wednesday to murdering three football players and wounding two other students in a mass shooting at the school in 2022.
Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., 25, pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated malicious wounding and five counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
The first-degree murder charges carry a sentence of 20 years to life. If Jones had been convicted of aggravated murder, he would have faced a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.
Prior to Wednesday’s guilty plea, Jones was scheduled to head to trial in January.
The shooting occurred Nov. 13, 2022 on a charter bus as Jones and other students arrived back at the Charlottesville campus after seeing a play in Washington, D.C.
Authorities said Jones — a former member of the football team — targeted specific people in the attack, but no motive has been released. An internal probe later revealed that Jones had been flagged by the school’s threat-assessment team.
Football players Lavel Davis Jr., D’Sean Perry and Devin Chandler were killed, while their teammate Mike Hollins was wounded. Hollins underwent multiple surgeries and returned to the football field several months later.
Marlee Morgan, another student, was also wounded.
“Today’s proceedings represent another step in a lengthy and painful journey for the families of the victims and for our community,” university president Jim Ryan said in a statement. “We continue to grieve the loss of three beloved members of our community and the injuries suffered by others on the bus.”
The university in June agreed to a $9 million settlement to some of the victims and their families.