Savannah McNealy was a 22-year-old senior from Colorado State University, who was killed early Thursday morning in a shooting near campus, which has left three people dead and one wounded. The shooting suspect is included among the dead. According to police, the incident happened outside an apartment complex about a mile west of the campus. The name of the suspected shooter has not yet been released to the public.
The shooting reportedly occurred on Thursday at around 2 A.M. As of this writing, the motive for the double homicide is unknown.
The Larimer County coroner’s office confirmed Fort Collins resident Savannah McNealy as one of three dead during Thursday’s shooting. McNealy had been shot multiple times. The office ruled her death as a homicide.
The name’s of the other three involved have not yet been released to the public. City police Sgt. Dean Cunningham said that it looks as if at least one of the victims knew the shooter.
The scene of the crime was cordoned off by yellow police tape. This tape blocked off access to a parking area for an apartment building that houses many student and faculty members from CSU.
A former CSU student by the name of Darren Rutz lives near the area and reported waking up by the sound of gunfire followed by a woman screaming, according to his interview with CBS Denver station KCNC-TV. Rutz said, “There was a lot of gunshots actually, so, I don’t know, they sounded like they were all coming from the same place.”
Austin Pickett lives in the complex where the shooting took place. “We just kept hearing these manic screams, at which point we decided to call 911,” said Pickett in an interview with the news station.
Grief counselors at Colorado State University reportedly tended to students and others at an on-campus student center. The university sent out an e-mail to students and staff regarding the shooting in Fort Collins, stating that, “We are deeply saddened by this terrible loss to our campus community and will share more information as we have it.”
Who Was Savannah McNealy?
Savannah McNealy/Facebook
Savannah McNealy was a student enrolled at Colorado State University, who was in her senior year at the time of the shooting. During her time at CSU, she studied liberal arts, art, and art history, according to Fort Collins Coloradoan. McNealy also contributed to CSU Life, a monthly campus publication, where she worked as a designer. She was set to graduate from Colorado State University in December.
McNealy lived in Fort Collins, Colorado. But her Facebook page suggests that she’s originally from Denver.
CSU President Dr. Tony Frank confirmed McNealy’s death in a statement.
Frank wrote, “Savannah majored in Art and would have graduated this December. A member of the student media staff and an intern on CSU’s Creative Services Team, she was well-loved and respected by those who knew her.”
Info about Colorado State University
Colorado State University is a public university with more than 33,000 students. The school is roughly 65 miles from Denver. Thursday’s shooting occurred outside an apartment complex about a mile west of CSU.
The university was founded in 1870.
