–By Steven Rodas–
It has been over a month since the fatal shooting of 18-year-old NJCU freshman Reginald Terry on December 21.
Early on Saturday morning, Terry was shot near the intersection of Washington and Market Street in Newark, at approximately 1:15 a.m. outside of a party, officials said.
Terry’s assistant football coach, Chris Strumolo, of Central High School, said Terry was the last kid he would expect killed on the street. Strumolo said Terry, also known as “Goose” or “Reggie” by his teammates, was one of a kind.
“I want people to know he was a good child,” Terry’s mother Leandra Davis told News 12.
Although Terry was an undeclared major at NJCU, his mother told nj.com he was planning on studying computer science at Montclair University. Eventually, Terry would have continued his football career.
“My prayers go out to his family. It’s just a hard situation when you see this happen to a young individual with so much potential,” said Luceand Cuba, an NJCU Computer Science professor. “He was an excellent student in my class.”
Newark police and Terry’s uncle confirmed the story of the shooting.
A group of party participants, in downtown Newark, were in a brutal argument with passerbys from a nearby bar. Someone pulled out a gun. Terry and the group ran off. A bullet not meant for Terry, according to Newark police, struck him in the back of the neck.
During the initial investigation, the Essex County Sherriff’s CrimeStoppers program offered a $15,000 reward for information in connection with the killing.
On New Years Eve, the Essex Prosecutors Office announced the arrest of Damiar Pendergrass, 18, and Raquan Langford, 19, in connection with the shooting of Terry.
Both men were charged with murder, conspiracy, possession of a weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. Bail for both men was set at $750,000.
Before Terry’s death, during an entry on a college recruiting website, NCSAsports.org, he spoke of his drive in life.
“Coming from the projects, there are not many people that motivate me to do better or be successful in life,” Terry wrote. “The only people that ever motivated me were my family members and the teachers from my school.”
A tribute was built where Terry lost his life on 260 Wangton St. in Newark with candles, balloons and messages etched on a white poster from loved ones.
From afar a green poster from the tribute reads, “We’ll always love you.”
