New particulars emerge about scholar gunned down at Rice College

Harris Marley

World Courant

This story discusses suicide. Should you or somebody you realize is having ideas of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Disaster Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

New particulars have emerged in regards to the Rice College scholar who was gunned down in an obvious murder-suicide that rocked the elite Houston faculty on the primary day of courses.

Andrea Rodriguez Avila, 21, was a junior political science and pre-law main from Nottingham, Maryland. She had simply transferred to Rice in spring 2024 from the Group School of Baltimore County, Fox Information Digital has realized.

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An achieved scholar, Avila was deputy parliamentarian of the Rice Pupil Affiliation, a peer educational advisor at her residential corridor – Jones School – and a member of the college’s Honor Council. 

A spokesperson for the college confirmed that Avila’s household arrived in Houston on Tuesday morning – a day after the tragedy. 

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Andrea Rodriguez Avila was discovered lifeless in her dorm room at Rice College on Monday, August 26, 2024. A person, who was not a scholar on the faculty, was additionally discovered lifeless from an obvious self-inflicted gunshot wound. (Andrea Rodríguez/LinkedIn)

“[Avila’s family] is receiving help from the college’s management staff throughout this profoundly difficult time. They’ve requested privateness as they mourn their loss however are deeply appreciative of the outpouring of ideas and prayers from the neighborhood,” a college spokesperson mentioned in an announcement shared with Fox Information Digital. 

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Avila was discovered lifeless in her dorm room Monday when college police carried out a welfare test. Household had expressed concern that they have been unable to get in contact together with her. 

A person, who was not a scholar on the college, was additionally discovered lifeless within the room with an obvious self-inflicted gunshot wound, police mentioned.

Houston police haven’t but launched the id of the suspected shooter, however say he’s a 22-year-old believed to be from Florida. The discharge of his id is pending verification by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.

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Rice College Police Chief Clemente Rodriguez confirmed Avila and the person have been in a “courting relationship.”

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An ambulance on scene at Rice College in Houston.   (FOX 26 Houston)

A word left on the scene indicated that the pair have been concerned in a “troubled relationship,” police mentioned.

The heartbreaking crime has rocked the Rice neighborhood on what ought to have been an thrilling begin to the autumn semester. 

Rice College President Reginald DesRoches mentioned the campus has been “shaken to its core” on a day that ought to have been crammed with “promise and new beginnings.”

FILE- An obvious murder-suicide on the primary day of courses has shaken the Rice College campus “to its core,” the college’s president Reginald DesRoches mentioned. (Brandon Bell/Getty Photos)

“The ache we really feel on campus tonight is immeasurable, and I do know that phrases can not absolutely seize the sorrow and grief that lots of it’s possible you’ll be experiencing. I urge you to lean on one another, to supply help and compassion, and to do not forget that we’re all joined in our grief and care,” DesRoches wrote in a message on the college’s web site. 

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Courses have been canceled on the faculty on Tuesday.

Rice is a small faculty with solely about 8,500 college students. Tuition is about $60,000 a 12 months. 

New particulars emerge about scholar gunned down at Rice College

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