Dozens of candles line the walkway and form a heart outside the East Davis apartment where a Davis High School student was fatally shot Thursday in what police are calling a “horrible tragedy.”
“Imma miss all those classes with you,” a grieving classmate wrote on one of the candles, lit in memory of 19-year-old Jerred Leroy Vargas.
Vargas, a senior on track to graduate in June, passed away several hours after arriving at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento with a gunshot wound to his chest, Davis Deputy Police Chief Paul Doroshov confirmed Friday.
“It’s almost surreal. He was only 19,” Doroshov said. “It’s horrible for the whole family.”
Investigators on Saturday were continuing their probe into the shooting, reported at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday as a “male shot in the chest, accidental gunshot by brother,” at the Tuscany Villas Apartments, 2526 E. Eighth St., according to the Davis Police Department’s online bulletin.
“That’s the information we got initially,” Doroshov said. “But it will be a pretty substantial investigation. Whether or not it was an accident, you want to make sure you’ve got that right and you haven’t missed anything.”
Jerred Vargas/Courtesy photo
No arrests have been made, and Doroshov said the matter likely will be forwarded to the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office for a decision regarding further actions, if any.
The brother, who also lived at the apartment, “has been fully cooperative with us throughout the investigation thus far,” Doroshov added. He disclosed that the firearm was a handgun, but further details such as how the shooting occurred or where the gun was obtained have not been released.
However, “we don’t have any evidence at this point suggesting it was illegally owned,” Doroshov said.
Several other people also were inside the apartment at the time, but it remained unclear on Friday how many may have witnessed the shooting.
There were no updates regarding the police investigation on Saturday. An autopsy to confirm Vargas’ cause and manner of death will be conducted next week, Yolo County Chief Deputy Coroner Gina Moya said Friday.
Meanwhile, the Davis Joint Unified School District has dispatched teams of crisis counselors not only to Davis High School, but also to campuses throughout the city to offer counseling and bereavement support services to both students and staff, district spokeswoman Maria Clayton said.
“We know he (Vargas) had friends and siblings in other places,” Clayton said. The counselors “are going to be on hand as long as they’re needed.”
According to Clayton, Vargas began attending Davis schools as an eighth grader at Harper Junior High after moving here from another district.
“Our sincere condolences go out to Jerred’s family and friends,” DJUSD Superintendent John Bowes wrote in a message sent Friday to students’ families. “Sudden tragedy can be difficult to manage and may bring up other hardship and loss. We encourage you to seek out support and resources for students and yourself as necessary.”
The message included a link to access the school district’s mental health and support resources: https://www.djusd.net/cms/one.aspx?pageId=850888.
“This is a difficult time, but as a community we can look to one another for strength and support. Please join me in keeping the Vargas family in your thoughts,” Bowes wrote.
— Reach Lauren Keene at lkeene@davisenterprise.net or 530-747-8048. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene
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