UNC Charlotte identifies slain students

UPDATE: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte clarified some details of the deadly shooting that happened Tuesday, including the names of the victims and the fact that the suspect had withdrawn from classes. The university said 21-year-old Riley Howell of Waynesville, N.C., and 19-year-old Ellis Parlier of Midland, N.C., died in the attack. Wounded were 20-year-old Rami Alramadhan of Saihat, Saudia Arabia; 20-year-old Sean Dehart of Apex; 23-year-old Emily Houpt of Charlotte; and 19-year-old Drew Pescaro of Apex. UNC-Charlotte spokeswoman Buffy Stephens said Wednesday that suspect Trystan Andrew Terrell, 22, withdrew from school earlier this year. Police disarmed and arrested Terrell in the classroom where the shooting took place.

OUR EARLIER REPORT (9:48 a.m.): A shooting by a lone gunman at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte on Tuesday left two people dead, four injured, and a community struggling to understand the senselessness of the violence. “I just went into a classroom and shot the guys,” the suspect, Trystan Andrew Terrell, told reporters Tuesday as police led him away in handcuffs on the last day of classes. Terrell, a 22-year-old student at the school, was arrested on two counts of murder, four counts of attempted murder, and various weapons charges. Police who were gathering on campus to provide security for a concert rushed to the classroom where the shooting took place and arrested Terrell inside. “Our officers’ actions definitely saved lives,” Campus Police Chief Jeff Baker said. Students fled and hid during the shooting and sat through a lengthy lockdown as police secured the campus. Police have not said whether the people killed were students, faculty, or others.

“A student should not have to fear for his or her life when they are on our campuses,” said North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat. “Parents should not have to worry about their students when they send them off to school. And I know that this violence has to stop. … In the coming days we will take a hard look at all of this to see what we need to do going forward.”