Arizona Daily Wildcat photojournalist Mason Kumet arrived at the Arizona Sonoran Hall just as his phone was blowing up with a UAlert: “Shooting near Park Ave/4th Street. Police on scene. Avoid the area.”

Kumet’s girlfriend had called him several minutes earlier to tell him about the shooting. She had received a text from a friend who was walking by when the shooting occurred, but nothing had been confirmed yet.

Kumet, camera in hand, arrived at a chaotic scene and in the middle of it was a group of people crying. Kumet was the only journalist there.

Sunday’s UAlert was the fourth one regarding violence on or near campus that the University of Arizona sent out between Sept. 3-22.

There were other alerts in that span of less than 20 days, including one for a robbery, two armed robberies and an email warning the “Wildcat community to stay alert and aware of their surroundings” after two incidents involving men reportedly harassing women.   

But Sunday’s UAlert struck a nerve on the UA campus. 

Minhaj Jamshidi, a 19-year-old Pima Community College student, was shot and killed during a volleyball game near Arizona Sonora Hall. The shooter, police reported, had fled the area and was on the loose Sunday night. 

Jamshidi was the second victim of gun violence on campus after the October 2022 fatal shooting of UA professor Thomas Meixner, and it was the third gun-related UA killing; Erin Jones, 20, was killed and three others were injured in a drive-by shooting at an off-campus house party in late April 28. Four Tucson teens were charged in that killing.  

The UAPD Criminal Investigations Unit identified Sunday’s suspected gunman as Ryan Romero-Encinas, 20, who is not affiliated with UA.

Romero-Encinas was arrested at 3:32 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, about 4 miles north of campus. Police charged him with first-degree murder. 

Although a UAlert was sent at 10:59 a.m. Monday stating that “Classes will be held today, as scheduled,” many students opted not to attend, and some professors voluntarily canceled classes. 

Ashley Huggins, an assistant professor in the department of psychology who specializes in PTSD, said she heard about more than one student asking to be excused from class on Monday. 

The mental health effects of Sunday’s shooting can look different from person to person, she explained.

 “Some people might feel very afraid and have a lot of worry or fear about leaving their dorm or their apartment, about being on campus.” Huggins said. “Feeling helpless or not feeling heard can be common.” 

Jack Donohue, a freshman from Portland, Oregon, knew that UA had a history of violence on campus, but it didn’t affect his decision to come here.  

“I knew it wasn’t really that safe of a city, but I didn’t necessarily expect anything like what happened on Sunday to happen,” he said.

Donohue lives in Arizona Sonora Hall. Sunday night he was doing homework on a table outside of the main entrance of his dorm in front of the volleyball courts around 10:30 p.m. He was outside for 30 minutes when the commotion started. 

According to Donohue, an argument started on the volleyball court. There was a group of people standing near him, egging the argument on, but Donohue kept his head down and continued working. 

Next thing he knew, someone yelled and shots were fired.

Donohue jumped from his table and ran to a nook in the dorms, shielding himself from the courts. 

“For the next three hours or so I didn’t even think about going to sleep because I was so jittery because I had just gotten up and run from a gunshot,” Donohue said. 

For some students, the UAlerts of violence have become just another aspect of being on the UA campus. 

“I think when things are happening over and over it can make single instances feel less notable,” Huggins said. Or “it also can bring a lot more attention to the fact that there is violence or crime happening close by.” 

For Donohue, the opposite is true. He has become more aware of his surroundings, something he’s never really thought of before. 

“I know for a lot of people this was kind of a wake up call, a realization that stuff like that can happen on our campus, especially because it’s a public campus,” he said.

Kumet thinks it’s possible to be desensitized to hearing about violence on campus, but if students are actually there, they’re less likely to feel that way.

“I think it’s easy to read a UAlert about a shooting and say, ‘no way that’s horrible,’ and then go on about your day,” said Kumet, who had captured images of Jamshidi’s family soon after they learned that he had died. “But I think it’s another thing to be present and have to hear the family screaming that their son or brother has officially been pronounced dead.” 

 Jamshidi, who was in the group playing volleyball, happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, Kumet said.

“That aspect of how easily that could have been you doesn’t set in until you’re there and realize, ‘Wow I walk by this part of campus everyday,’ or ‘My girlfriend or boyfriend live right across the street in that dorm,’” he said. 

For mental health support provided by the University of Arizona:

• Students can contact Counseling & Psych Services at 520-621-3334, scheduling an appointment online or dropping in at a CAPS location during operating hours. Visit the CAPS website for more information. 
• CAPS also offers support through its Coping With Gun Violence webpage, which has information on reactions to trauma, healing and self-care.
• Employees who wish to speak with a counselor can contact Employee Assistance Counseling – available 24/7 to all U of A employees, their dependents and members of their households – by calling 877-327-2362 (TTY: 800-697-0353).

Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.