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Students Recover Emotionally, Physically from After-Party Shooting

Photo credit: Langston Gazette "I feel loved," said shooting victim Craig Owens, left, of Langston University. Fellow student Curtis Canady, who also was shot, is attending classes and doing well.

By Tonya Grant
Black College Wire

Two Langston University students are recovering from the physical and emotional trauma that resulted from a shooting at an after-party in the early hours of Jan. 15.

Craig Owens, a senior biology major from Lawton, Okla., and Curtis Canady, an international studies major from Fort Worth, Texas, both 22, are back on the Langston, Okla., campus and happy to be alive.

The party was hosted by members of the Oklahoma State University chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., in the Holiday Inn in Stillwater, Okla.

Karras Mitchell Harrison, 20, is accused of opening fire on students with a .45-caliber gun after he was not allowed into the invitation-only party. Four students were shot, including Owens and Canady, and one man died from his wound. Harrison is charged with first degree murder, which carries a sentence of life in prison or the death penalty.

His friend Louis Jerome Jones, 21, is accused of acting as an accomplice. Jones brought the gun to the hotel that Harrison used during the shooting, according to police. He is charged with accessory to murder and possession of a firearm while on probation. If convicted, he could receive a 45-year sentence. Both men have previously been in trouble with the law and are not affiliated with any university.

Some students were warned that a man trying to get into the party had a gun.

"I heard someone mention that there was somebody trippin' and he had heat," Canady said. "It seemed like it was about 10 to 15 minutes later and I heard two shots go off. I turned around and then another shot went off and I could feel my face burning. By that point, folks had started running, while others hit the floor. I got down on the ground in disbelief until I knew the coast was clear. I didn't even realize I had been hit."

Witnesses said that after being denied entry, Harrison grabbed a gun from Jones' waist. He stuck his hand and gun inside the door and started firing as people tried to shut the door on him. Police were called to the scene around 3:13 a.m. Canady had been shot in the hand and another bullet grazed his face. Owens was shot in the upper back and another bullet went through his right leg and lodged in his left one. Legaria Thomas, a 19-year-old Oklahoma State student, was shot in the face, and her bones and teeth were shattered.

Paul Shanor, 21, an Oklahoma University student and an Alpha, was shot in the chest and died from the wound that afternoon.

The victims were first taken to Stillwater Medical Center. Canady was released three hours later. Owens was transported by helicopter to OU Medical Center and released on Jan. 17. However, the bullets in his back and left leg were not removed.

Witnesses were in a state of disbelief.

"I kept telling myself that this can't be happening," said Amber Maupin, 20, a fashion marketing major from the University of Central Oklahoma. "The girl who got shot was standing behind me within five feet. It was a reality check knowing that I could have been one of them."

With the help of friends, relatives and other supporters, Canady and Owens have been trying to get back to their normal routines, more cognizant of how precious life is.

"I feel loved," Owens said. "It's good to know people care about you."

Owens uses a wheelchair and was not supposed to drive or walk for six weeks. He said his slight immobility should not keep him from graduating because he is allowed to do his schoolwork at home. He successfully underwent surgery at OU Trauma Clinic to have the bullets removed.

Canady was attending classes and doing well.

"If the shooter's gun hadn't jammed, there's no telling how the situation could have ended," he said. "I'm the most fortunate out of the bunch so I can't complain."

The students were in shock over the death of Shanor.

"It was like losing a real brother," said Owens, who is also an Alpha. "I was the last person to talk to him. I told him everything was going to be all right. Later, a young lady from OU came into my hospital room crying, and at that moment I knew he was gone."

Tonya Grant, a student at Langston University, writes for the Langston Gazette.

Posted Feb. 6, 2006