Shaw student killed in motorcycle crash remembered at vigil
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- During an emotional vigil inside Shaw University's campus chapel Wednesday evening, "loud" and "friend" were two words students and faculty consistently used to describe 22-year-old De'Andre Jamar Jackson, who died in a motorcycle accident earlier this week.
"He always had a good presence when he came around. Even if somebody had a bad day, he came around. Even if they didn't want to be bothered, they had a smile on their face when they seen Kountry," said friend and Shaw student Dwayne Howard.
Monday afternoon, Jackson, known on campus as "Kountry," was headed west on Clark Avenue in Cameron Village when a 1998 Lexus LS400 traveling east, driven by 65-year-old Ernestine Leach turned left in front his 2008 Suzuki GSX1300RX motorcycle causing a collision. Paramedics took Jackson to WakeMed where he died.
A newly released wreck report showed police suspected Leach, who was charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle, might have been drinking, but did not detect impairment.
The news sent shock waves across the Shaw student body.
"Is he OK," student Terence Greene said recalling the moment he found out about the tragedy. "That's all I wanted to know and I didn't get the news that I wanted to hear."
University officials say Jackson had last officially been enrolled as a senior on the Shaw campus last spring. His popularity, antics, laughter, and larger-than-life presence attracted more than 200 students to the vigil. Approximately 12 of them spoke about the void brought on by the Washington, N.C. native's death and how their emptiness can never be filled.
"He was everybody. If you didn't know his name, it was something wrong with you, because you ain't been on campus -- cause everybody know his name Kountry, the country guy," said student Christopher Ingram.
Wednesday's vigil was the second in as many days, which Jackson's friends are planning to follow up with a party Thursday. They are collecting proceeds from the party to help Jackson's family pay for his funeral, which is tentatively scheduled Sunday in his hometown.
