Murder charge for NSU teen


April 3 2007

NORFOLK -- A Norfolk State University freshman remained in jail without bond Monday on charges that he stabbed two men, one of them fatally, over the weekend.

Terrance Allen Ross, 18, was booked on charges of murder and malicious wounding, Norfolk Police Sgt. Ollan Burruss said. Ross is suspected of fatally stabbing fellow freshman Sean Williams, a Denbigh High graduate, outside their dormitory late Saturday.

Ross also is suspected of stabbing Williams' friend, who remained hospitalized in stable condition Monday, Burruss said.

Ross and Williams lived on different floors of the same dormitory, said NSU spokeswoman Sharon Hoggard.

The three men got into an argument, which led to the stabbing outside the dormitory, Burruss said. He didn't release information about the dispute or the attack on Williams, who is gay, but said the incident was not a hate crime.

Burruss declined to release the second victim's name because authorities are still interviewing witnesses.

How sad

Sad, just sad.

Survivor: Williams died saving my life
Denbigh graduate, killed on NSU campus, was stabbed while defending a friend, the victim tells student newspaper.

BY MIKE HOLTZCLAW
928-6479

April 4 2007, 6:17 AM EDT

NORFOLK -- Denbigh High School graduate Sean Williams died while saving the life of his friend, the surviving victim of a stabbing told Norfolk State University's student newspaper.

Sherrod Allen, who was with Williams on Saturday night when the 18-year-old Newport News native was fatally attacked on the NSU campus, told the Spartan Echo: "I'd already been stabbed. That's when he jumped in."

Terrance Ross, 18, is in custody at the Norfolk City Jail, charged with murder and malicious wounding. Williams and Ross were Norfolk State freshmen. Allen did not attend NSU but was friends with Williams.

Allen spoke to the student newspaper from his room at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. He was released from the hospital on Tuesday.

Allen said five people attacked him and Williams outside an NSU dormitory. He said the attack was "over a bad money transaction."

Allen said that after he was stabbed, Williams tried to defend him and ended up getting stabbed himself. He died at the scene.

"I never thought I'd have to watch my own friend die in front of my face," Allen told the Spartan Echo.

Williams, a gifted singer, will be remembered tonight at a 6:30 p.m. vigil at NSU's L. Douglas Wilder Performing Arts Center.
Copyright © 2007, Daily Press

Denbigh grad killed at Norfolk State University
The promising singer was slain outside a dormitory on Saturday night. Another student was taken into custody.

BY KIM O'BRIEN ROOT
928-6473

April 2 2007

NORFOLK -- In his first year at Norfolk State University, Sean Donte' Williams continued the singing he had loved since he was a child, even earning a rare freshman spot on the university's a cappella chorus.

Although away at college, Williams remained well-known throughout the music community at Denbigh High School - from which he graduated in 2006. He dreamed of one day returning to his hometown of Newport News to teach music.

But the dream was cut short Saturday night, when the 18-year-old was stabbed to death on Norfolk State's campus after an altercation outside a dormitory. A friend who also was stabbed - and who was not a student - survived, police said.

Norfolk police have so far released few details, including what led to the dispute between Williams and another Norfolk State student, who was taken into custody Saturday night. Police said they expect to charge the student, whose name had not been released by Sunday night, with murder and malicious wounding.

Friends of Williams said the stabbing might have had something to do with him being gay. Williams was part of the House of Mizrahi, a nationwide social network similar to a fraternity or sorority.

Williams was proud of who he was, said Billy Lowery, a 16-year-old friend from Norfolk who is also in the group.

"It's just so horrible," Lowery said. "It still seems unreal. He didn't deserve this."

Sgt. Ollan Burruss of the Norfolk Police Department said Sunday he had no evidence a hate crime had taken place. There was nothing to indicate the stabbing resulted from anything other than an altercation, Burruss said.

Police continue to investigate, he said. On Sunday, investigators were still interviewing witnesses at the school.

Meanwhile, Williams' family issued a statement thanking everyone for the "outpouring of love and support that has been given during this extremely difficult time. Though the act of violence that took his life was unnecessary, Sean died doing something he always did - looking out for others."

The family plans to set up a memorial fund this morning.

The last time a person had been killed at Norfolk State was in November 2003, said school spokeswoman Sharon Hoggard. Neither the victim nor suspect in that shooting incident was a student, she said. The incident spilled over from a nearby street.

"It's really a tragic, sad thing," Hoggard said of Williams' death. "The campus is really in mourning for the loss of this youngster who had so much promise. We cannot believe this happened."

Norfolk State, a historically black university with more than 6,200 students, has made grief counselors available to students, Hoggard said. A memorial likely will be this week, she said.

Williams graduated from Denbigh High eager to make his mark on the music world, said his former vocal music teacher, Carla Jones. He was a talented tenor who was a mentor to many students at Denbigh, she said. At college, he was majoring in music education with a concentration in voice and a minor in piano.

As a freshman, Williams sang in Norfolk State's concert choir and earned a coveted spot in the Spartan Chorale, a mostly a cappella group.

"Any time a student makes it into a college-level singing group, there's something to be said about his singing voice," said Steve Hart, a Denbigh High drama director who two years ago directed Williams in a production of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown."

Williams played Snoopy.

"He was a very, very good singer," Hart said. "He was a good student - the type of kid you wish you had a whole chorus of."

His family said Williams had a voice like an angel, a song in his heart.

Not long after his death Saturday, Williams' MySpace page began filling up with comments from friends.

"There's always a time when God takes his angels ..."

Your "name will live on and u will live on n every1 heart."

"I can still hear UR voice."

While still a student at Denbigh, Williams recorded a song as a soloist in a district music festival. Sunday, Jones couldn't help but remember the song Williams had sung so beautifully.

Its name?

"Ain't Got Time to Die."
Copyright © 2007, Daily Press

"A bad money transaction" and where are the other four people. The whole truth is not being told here.

A friend of mine told me that some people on campus said it was only three people. The two who were stabbed are gay, and that the argument started from joking. It was also stated by students that the three wre smoking, so he must have knew the two he stabbed. Either Allen is lying or the students on campus are not sure of the actual actions that had taken place.