University of Memphis football player fatally shot, police say; classes cancelled Mon
 

http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slu...v=ap&type=lgns

University of Memphis football player fatally shot, police say; classes canceled Monday
By WOODY BAIRD, Associated Press Writer
October 1, 2007

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- A University of Memphis football player was fatally shot on campus in what police believe was a targeted attack, and classes were canceled Monday as a precaution.

Taylor Bradford, 21, apparently was shot near a university housing complex about 9:45 p.m. Sunday and then crashed a car he was driving into a tree a short distance away on campus, officials said.

ADVERTISEMENT


"We found him with a bullet wound to the body and the ambulance took him to the hospital where he was pronounced (dead)," said Roger Prewitt, a Memphis Police inspector.

Detectives investigating the shooting received reports of gunfire being heard in a parking lot of the housing complex about 200 yards from where Bradford was found, police spokeswoman Monique Martin said.

Homicide detectives were unsure of a motive for the shooting and had no suspects, she said. "That's all still under investigation," she said.

University president Shirley Raines said that witnesses told police they saw more than one person leaving the scene who could have been involved.

"This was an act directed specifically toward the victim and it was not a random act of violence," she said.

Residence halls in the surrounding area were closed to outsiders immediately, and residents were advised not to go outside. Students, faculty and staff were told by e-mail early Monday morning that classes were canceled.

In an e-mail alert to faculty, staff and students at 3:40 a.m. Monday, officials wrote that "the initial investigation indicates this was an act directed specifically toward the victim and was not a random act of violence."

The university decided to cancel classes Monday, although police believe the person or persons involved in the shooting left the campus immediately.

"We feel like the campus is safe, but we'd rather err on the safety than not," Gunther said.

Bradford, a 5-foot-11, 300-pound defensive lineman, was a junior who transferred to Memphis after two seasons at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala.

The Memphis Tigers host Marshall University on Tuesday night. A moment of silence was planned before the game.

"Our entire football team is deeply saddened by the loss of Taylor," head coach Tommy West said in a statement. "He was well respected and a popular member of our team. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family."

Bradford, a resident of Nashville, transferred to Memphis in 2006 and was on the roster for this season, but had not played in a game this season.

Bradford lettered in three sports at Antioch High School in Nashville, and held school records in shotput and discus.

The University of Memphis had 20,562 students enrolled for last fall, according to its Web site.

The school was founded in 1912 as West Tennessee State Normal School and was renamed Memphis State College in 1941. It became Memphis State University in 1957, two years before it admitted its first black students. It was renamed the University of Memphis in 1994.

In other campus violence, a University of Massachusetts-Amherst football player was listed in fair condition Monday after being stabbed in a fight on campus over the weekend. Freshman Johnny Evans, 18, of Durham, N.C., was taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield with a stab wound to the buttocks and less-serious cuts, school officials said.

Evans was injured in one of two fights that broke out early Sunday when hundreds of students were leaving the Student Union Building after a dance. A second student also was injured, but refused medical attention. No arrests had been made as of Monday, and police continued to investigate what caused the fights.

On the Net:

http://www.memphis.edu



Updated on Monday, Oct 1, 2007 1:41 pm, EDT

Police Up Reward For Catching Univ. of Memphis Football Player's Killer
10/01/07 6:59pm
ABC24 Memphis

Memphis police say they need the public’s help to catch the person who killed a University of Memphis football player. They’re offering an additional $5,000 for information leading to an arrest in Taylor Bradford’s murder. The defensive lineman was shot around 9:30 pm on Sunday on the school’s campus. Police say he was killed near the Carpenter Complex. Police say Bradford then drove away before smashing into a tree on Zach Curlin Street near Central Avenue.

On Monday, the University of Memphis campus was in mourning. Bradford’s Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity brother Everrett Smith says, “It hits home because I'm a member of Kappa Alpha Psi so it kinda hurts for someone so young to be taken so early.” Smith says the outgoing marketing major will be missed. Smith adds, “He was very focused on graduating next year, had big plans.”

University of Memphis student government president Gionni Carr also knew the Nashville Junior. He says Bradford’s death has been a shock. Carr adds, “You can't believe that just 45 minutes ago, he popped his head into a forum we were having about how to stop violence, and then he was the victim of violence.”

Carr and Smith say campus crime happens, but it's rarely violent. They still cannot comprehend how one of their friends could become a victim. Carr adds, “You know he was a good guy.” Smith says, “It's a lesson learned not to take life for granted and I hope a lot of students see that out of this.”

If you have any information that could help catch Bradford’s killers, call Crime Stoppers at (901) 528 – CASH

My condolences to his family, fraters and friends. :(

WOW!

My condolences!

Heard about his passing, but didn't know he's a Nupe.

Condolences to all. :(

Just got this in email.

Brother Taylor Bradford, (Kappa Beta, Spring ’07),

Funeral arrangements are listed below:

Friday, October 5, 2007

• Wake 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
• Kappa Memorial Services - 8:30 p.m.

Lee Chapel AME Church
1732 Scovel St.
Nashville TN 37208
Saturday, October 6, 2007

• Visitation from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
• Funeral 1:00 p.m.

House of God – Keith Dominion
2717 Scovel St .
Nashville TN 37208

The funeral home is:
Lewis & Wright Funeral Home
2500 Clarksville Pike
Nashville TN 37208
615/255-2371

IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, THE FAMILY IS ASKING THAT ALL DONATIONS BE MADE TO THE LEE CHAPEL AME CHURCH YOUTH MINISTRY.