BOONE, N.C.-- An Appalachian State University student from Matthews is dead, after an accidental shooting at an off-campus apartment in Boone.
Police said Jay Derby, 20, was killed around 12:30 am Sunday at a small party at the AppSouth Apartments off U.S. 321 near the university. Capt. Jim Wilson of the Boone Police Department says Derby was shot by a rifle.
Family members tell NewsChannel 36 that Derby was a junior at App. State, majoring in Business. He graduated from Butler High School in 2007.
Police did not release details of the shooting, other than it was accidental. A young woman identifying herself as Derby’s girlfriend approached a NewsChannel 36 reporter at the apartment building to confirm that the shooting was an accident.
Another friend said Derby’s best friend was holding the gun.
Neighbors at the three-story apartment building didn’t even realize something had happened until they saw police outside in the parking lot.
"I didn't think of anything when I heard thudding noises,” said Melissa Vega, who lives in the apartment below the one where the shooting happened. She said she didn’t even hear a gunshot.
"You would think I would, living in the floor below them, hear something like that," said Vega. “We thought it sounded like bowling upstairs. That's what we kind of concluded because we heard someone go from here to there really fast and then we heard like a thud.”
Vega and others were stunned to learn the shooting had taken the life of another student.
"That was really shocking,” said Stacey Miller, who drove by the apartments shortly after the shooting. “Things like that don't happen in Boone."
Matthew Diggs echoed that idea. “It was really unbelievable when I heard there was an actual shooting -- let alone one of my good friends."
Diggs sat next to Derby in jazz band at Butler. He remembers good times laughing and joking with Derby in class, and calls them “the best moments of high school.”
"He was a great guy, always best of friends..." Diggs paused to collect his emotions. "He was one of the biggest-hearted guys. He could bring a smile to your face just off a stupid joke."
He can’t believe a life so promising, was cut short in just a split second.
"I feel right now.. the best thing we can do is pray," said Diggs.
Boone police will forward the results of their investigation to the District Attorney's office for review and possible charges.
