Tamir Kalifa/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Suspect in UT Austin stabbing charged with murder, had been committed before
Filed under Crime at May 2017
Liz Farmer
Madlin Mekelburg
Cassandra Jaramillo
Updated May 3: Revised to include new information about an incident in West Campus.
A University of Texas at Austin student who "appeared normal" moments before he went on a deadly stabbing rampage Monday had been committed for mental problems before, police say.
Kendrex White has been booked on a murder charge.
Kendrex J. White, 21, is accused of killing one student and injuring three others on campus, outside Gregory Gym.
He's been booked into the Travis County Jail on a murder charge, with no bail set.
Authorities said Tuesday that White had been committed involuntarily in another city for mental problems, which they did not detail.
UPDATE: Witnesses say this is the suspect in the UT stabbing that killed one: https://t.co/wyk04eXNY4
Photo: Brandy Pena pic.twitter.com/ex1doN6NRr
— KVUE News (@KVUE) May 1, 2017
Freshman Harrison Brown died in the attack.
"Today our hearts are broken, and we have to begin the healing process," UT President Gregory Fenves said Tuesday.
Although students were told to avoid the area after the attack, there was no continued threat after White was taken into custody, officials said. The gym is in the heart of campus, next to Jester Dorm, large buildings that house students and classrooms.
Police patrols have been increased on campus and in nearby areas where many students live, officials later said.
From my roommates group message. Please stay safe. pic.twitter.com/xeF40Ef1zR
— Mark Skol, Jr. (@markskoljr) May 1, 2017
The three people who survived the attack suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. Only one of them remains hospitalized, Fenves said.
The scene of the fatal stabbing
White walked up to the four male victims and attacked them within the span of one block, UT police Chief David Carter said.
"His motivation, what was going through his mind, I can't answer at this time," Carter said.
But he dismissed concerns that fraternity members had been targeted.
Carter: "None of the victims in this case were wearing anything that would indicate they were members of a fraternity." #UT
— Madlin Mekelburg (@madlinbmek) May 2, 2017
Before the chaos near Gregory Gym, freshman Rachel Prichett was standing in line to get lunch at the Chi'Lantro food truck when she heard people screaming.
"I saw a guy standing there, just walking very calmly, but he was holding a machete-type knife," she said. "He grabbed this guy by the shoulder who was facing him and stabbed him in the back, and so I turned around and started running away.
"As I was running, I saw another guy that was sitting at a table slumped over and there was blood on him."
Police, who have interviewed dozens of witnesses, provided a similar account.
White reportedly kicked a female student "out of his way" before stabbing Brown. He continued walking calmly, stabbing a student who was sitting at a picnic table outside Gregory Gym before stabbing two others nearby, Carter said.
Stabbing here on UT campus. Please be safe yall. pic.twitter.com/zZG7hz6MIm
— Tarzan (@richhomie_qu4d) May 1, 2017
Carter said White also entered Jester Dorm and moved toward other students.
The chief commended police for their fast response, which he said had saved lives.
Officers got to Gregory Gym about 1:50 p.m. — less than two minutes after they were called.
They found White walking around the scene with a Bowie-style hunting knife, Carter said. One of the officers drew his weapon, ordered White to get on the ground and took him into custody.
Emergency personal work outside the scene where a student was fatally stabbed and three were injured on the Univeristy of Texas campus Monday. (Tamir Kalifa/Austin American-Statesman)
Students wait outside the scene where someone was fatally stabbed and others injured on the Univeristy of Texas campus Monday May, 1, 2017. Tamir Kalifa/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Law enforcement officers secure the scene of a stabbing that occurred on the UT campus on May 1, 2017. (TAMIR KALIFA/ AMERICAN-STATESMAN)
(Tamir Kalifa/AMERICAN-STATESMAN)
Brown, who hadn't decided on a major yet, graduated from Graham High School in 2016, according to a district Facebook post that paid tribute to him and his family after his death.
Graham is about 120 miles west of Dallas in Young County.
Quick tweet stream if you'll allow me, on Harrison Brown, the student from Graham, TX, killed on the UT campus Monday... pic.twitter.com/gK3SHP9V2k
— Jason Allen (@CBS11JasonAllen) May 2, 2017
Graham ISD said the district is praying the outpouring of sympathy will help Brown's family.
"There are no words adequate enough to express the sorrow felt by Graham ISD and the community of Graham for this loss," the district said. "Harrison was an inspiration to everyone around him. We were blessed and honored to have known him."
UT President Gregory Fenves said Tuesday that he'd met with Brown's mother and brother.
Brown was a talented musician, he said.
Fenves says Brown was a talented musician: "His family and our community will never be able to hear Harrison" perform again. #UT
The other victims have not been identified and it's not known whether they're connected to one another.
White, a biology major in the College of Natural Science, was removed from the school's student directory soon after the attack.He appears to be a 2014 graduate of Killeen High School, according to his Facebook page.
Friends close to White said he was an active volunteer in organizations on campus.
Chris Crawford, a UT senior studying philosophy, said he worked with White at the volunteer organization Real Role Models, which provided community service and mentorships.
"He was involved all the time, and he was at every meeting," Crawford said. "He would never be upset or sad in person. But through time, you never know what people go through."
UT biology major Kendrex White (third from left, in black) participated in an icebreaker with other students. He regularly volunteered at Real Role Models, a student organization that volunteered at elementary school.
(Tyesha Edge)
Kendrex White (pictured in grey) volunteering with UT organization Real Role Models at a service event to feed the homeless.
Tyesha Edge
Korbin Springer, an American studies junior studying, said he was supposed to have class with White later Monday. Springer said White was always smiling and the "nicest guy."
But White recently missed nearly a month of Spanish class, Springer said, and it seemed like something was wrong.
"It was unusual," he said. "He attended pretty regularly."
When White came back, he said he had been in an accident because of a seizure. He was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence in April, according to records obtained by KVUE-TV.
At a news conference Monday, Fenves told students to call home and let their parents know they were safe.
"Earlier this afternoon, a tragedy struck the heart of the University of Texas campus," Fenves said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and the families of this incredibly senseless attack."
Previous tragedies
UT announced at the beginning of the school year that it had make sweeping security upgrades after a campus slaying, the first at the university in nearly 50 years.
Meechaiel Criner, a homeless 18-year-old, is accused of killing freshman ballet student Haruka Weiser in April 2016. She was found in Waller Creek behind Gregory Gym, the scene of Monday's rampage.
Fenves: "I am hurt and I am angry that our campus has seen these two tragedies." #UT #UTStabbing
In September 2010, chaos struck the same area of campus when 19-year-old Colton Tooley fired an AK-47 outside and went into Perry-Castañeda Library, where he fatally shot himself. No one else was wounded.
The UT Tower, which looms nearby, was the site of the 1966 shooting spree in which student Charles Whitman killed 14 and injured 31. He also killed his wife and mother the previous night.
Gov. Greg Abbott said in a written statement that prayers were going out to all those affected by Monday's tragic events in Texas, including the UT stabbings and the shooting of a paramedic in Dallas.
"I have been briefed by the Department of Public Safety on both incidents, and have also talked to University of Texas at Austin President Greg Fenves," the governor said. "As the investigations into these heinous crimes continue, I have offered all available state resources to both Dallas and the University of Texas to assist in any effort."
Other incidents Monday
Rumors flew around social media about other violent incidents in West Campus, a residential area near UT.
Fenves said Tuesday that there is no known connection between the stabbing near Gregory Gym and incidents in West Campus.
In one case, authorities found a man believed to be in his 20s, who died in an apartment in the 2700 block of Nueces Street, near Guadalupe Street, about 8:30 p.m. Monday, the Austin American-Statesman reports.
Interim Police Chief Brian Manley later said it's not a suspicious death and it is unrelated to any other case, including an earlier incident that occurred nearby in the 2600 block of Nueces Street about 3 p.m.
A man said he was stabbed during a confrontation with someone who'd threatened a woman with a knife. On Wednesday, however, police said the man recanted, admitting that he had accidentally stabbed himself and made up the story to police.
Manley said that man could be charged with giving a false report to police.
For those who don't go to @UTAustin, this is the text we got from the school: pic.twitter.com/a1UQlOmyU9
— Alexandra Samuels (@AlexSamuelsx5) May 1, 2017
Responding to questions about the university's response to Monday's attack, Carter said no sirens were activated because they would have indicated that something else was going on, such as a lockdown. A text-message alert was sent about 20 minutes later.
"As soon as officers arrived they put the individual into custody, so there was no ongoing threat," Carter said.
Students also tweeted about an incident across campus from the deadly knife attacks, where a banner reading "Tuition pays for bombs" was reportedly hanged from a walkway. The pedestrian bridge across the bustling Dean Keeton Street connects the Belo Center for New Media with Jesse H. Jones Communication Center.
Some people said buildings had been evacuated, but the Moody College of Communication tweeted that the Belo building was not under lockdown.
Staff writer Tom Steele contributed to this report.
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