FRANKFORT, Ky. (WKYT) – Kentucky State University students carry more than just luggage as they leave campus for winter break; they’re carrying the weight of Tuesday’s deadly shooting that killed a classmate.
Jacob Bard, 48, of Indiana, pleaded not guilty Thursday to murder and assault charges in connection with the shooting that killed 19-year-old De’Jon Darrell Fox Jr. and injured another student.
Many students are preparing to go home for winter break, but Tuesday’s events remain on their minds. Most students approached for interviews declined to speak about the shooting.
Freshman Barbara Starks was in her dorm room when she received the email about the shooting. She said she wasn’t shocked by the news, noting this wasn’t the first shooting on campus this year. The first occurred in August.
Starks said she and her roommate weren’t surprised by another shooting but didn’t think anyone had been hurt.
Starks said she barely knew Fox, but had a class together. They talked briefly on the first day of school, and she remembered he was funny. She wanted to offer her condolences to Fox’s family.
Franklin County Judge Executive Michael Mueller said all families involved in the tragedy are forever changed, including both the victim’s and the suspect’s families.
At Wednesday night’s vigil, Mueller expressed hopefulness that the KSU community can heal together. He said he believes the shooting was an accident, and the suspect acted on instinct during what police called an altercation.
“I think he wishes he hadn’t done it, but that’s not going to bring anybody back, or that’s not going to change everybody that’s hurting in this room,” Mueller said.
Starks described the shooting as part of a sad reality of violence. She said college campuses are a place where people come to escape crime.
“This is where we come to grow, to become better than where we came from, and for him to die is just really sad,” Starks said.
Starks said she hopes for a safe start to 2026. Following Tuesday’s events, she believes stronger security enforcement is needed.
Bard’s next court appearance is scheduled for December 16.
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