NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — A man is in custody and faces multiple charges after gunshots were heard on the Christopher Newport University campus overnight, the school has confirmed. His stepmother told 10 On Your Side she is surprised and saddened to hear what happened.
The man has been identified by the university as Kyle Emery Rumsey, 28, of Hayes, in Gloucester County. He faces five counts of discharge of a firearm, five counts of reckless handling of firearms, one count of burglary and one count of malicious activation of a fire alarm.
CNU Police responded to a disturbance at James River Residence Hall just after 3 a.m. that involved activation of a fire alarm. Then, beginning at 3:17 a.m. police started to receive reports of gunshots heard near the David Student Union. At 3:20 a.m., University Police responded to DSU and discovered evidence of gunshots and broken glass near the north portico of the student union facing the Great Lawn.
At 4:19 a.m. CNU posted on X that there was police activity at the David Student Union in the north eating porch area. The community was asked to avoid that area.
Based on the charges, Rumsey allegedly set off the fire alarm in the residence hall before heading to an area near the David Student Union and allegedly opening fire there.
Suspect’s stepmother reacts
10 On Your Side spoke Wednesday with the suspect’s stepmother. herself trying to figure what went wrong with her son.
As the CNU campus returns to normal after the shooting that blasted out this window, we’re finding out more about the suspect from his stepmother, who spoke with us by phone.
“I am saddened by the news, and I pray for Kyle and for all who love him and anyone who was involved,” said Kyle Rumsey’s stepmother, Barbara.
She does not know much about what happened and has not spoken with her son.
“I can’t tell you anything about what has happened,” she said. “The only thing I know he is being held with no admittance for family or even a chaplain at Riverside.”
In a statement from CNU chief communications officer Jim Hanchett, he said that “decisions about visitors in situations like this are typically made by law enforcement, not a hospital. In this case, the decision about visitation was made by CNU Police.”
Kyle Rumsey has been charged with five counts of discharging a firearm — firing five shots that shattered so much glass it injured him.
“I can tell you about his injuries,” she said. “His father told me that from some broken glass his leg was cut all the way to the bone.”
What happened?
CNU first called to the James River Residence Hall for a disturbance and pulled the fire alarm.
Campus police reported to the residence hall at 3:06 a.m., and from the middle of campus you can see it through the trees. You then look to the right and there’s the David Student Union about 11 minutes later. It would have been a casual stroll to go from the residence hall to the Student Union. Then the students who were outside at 3:17 a.m. reported shots fired over at the David Student Union.
“What happened at the dorm and the student union where he was cut,” she said, “we have no news because no one can get to him to find out what happened or where his mind was at.”
They can’t get to him because he is in hospital, and the 12 charges against him cannot be served because he is there.
“The only thing I know is he went with a friend, which was a friend of a student,” she said.
However, it was apparently a dorm resident who let him in.
“I was surprised to hear what happened,” she said. “I was shocked and amazed because Kyle is the sweetest boy. … I don’t understand this at all. … He’s a very hard worker, very loving boy, who is trying to make his way.”
A student who lives at James River Hall told a WAVY crew he heard two to four gunshots. He said his dormitory was told to shelter in place.
“We left because of the shots,” said CNU student Dane Christensen. “We tried to get as far away from the area as possible.”
Three people who are suitemates in James River Hall heard the fire alarm and the shots fired.
“We heard the fire alarm,” CNU student Alex Phillippe said, “and we made our way outside and probably three, four minutes later, we heard gunshots in the distance. People started screaming, ‘everyone get back in the dorm.'”
Those who had left the dorm was due to the fire alarm, and then after hearing shots, they ran back inside.
“But like he said … after we ran back into our room … we put a bunch of stuff in front of the door,” said student Dillon Konopka. “Not much we could do in that scenario, so we had to play it by ear and lay low.”
Said student Michael Steele: “It obviously got me nervous because you don’t think it can happen until it does. I trusted the boys in blue (police). They had our backs with three minutes response time.”
We asked on a scale of 1 to 10 how serious what happened today is?
“I give it like a 7,” said student Drew Smmerlin. “I mean it’s pretty serious having somebody have a gun on campus, and firing shots. I would say it was a pretty serious event.”
School officials say they have not located any victims at this time. Police also retrieved a gun and noted no further threat to the community.
Christopher Newport University announced later in the morning that the campus would operate under normal conditions with classes going on as scheduled.
Due to damage to a window, the Regattas dining hall was closed for breakfast and will remain closed until further notice.
Officials said Rumsey is not a student and is not believed to have any connection to the University. He was also said to have injuries unrelated to the incident.
Support services are available for students through the Counseling Services office in the Freeman Center or call 757-594-7047. Faculty and staff seeking resources, can contact the Human Resources Office.
CNU president weighs in
CNU president William G. Kelly, in a message sent to the university community, praised the quick response of its police department and residence life staff.
The complete statement is below:
Dear Captains,
This has been a difficult day that has underlined the challenges we face as a community and the strengths we bring to the task.
Let me begin by asking you to join me in thanking the brave and quick-thinking officers of the Christopher Newport University Police Department and the actions of our Residence Life Staff. Our Police Department de-escalated the situation before any member of our community could be harmed. They then worked quickly, calling on years of experience and training, to determine that there was no continuing threat to the campus. We are made safer because we can count on the outstanding 24/7 efforts of Police Chief Dan Woloszynowski, a highly regarded leader in the field, and the exceptional men and women of the Police Department. Thank you as well to the Newport News Police Department for their assistance.
To help with our understanding of what happened, let me lay out some details. Some information can’t be shared because it cannot be confirmed or must remain confidential to protect the criminal investigation.
3:06 AM – University Police responded to a report of a disturbance in James River Residence Hall initiated by a person who had accompanied a visitor and was signed in as a guest of a resident. That disturbance included the activation of a fire alarm.
3:17 AM – As our Police were at James River, students called the dispatch center, reporting they had heard what they believed to be gunfire in the vicinity of the David Student Union.
3:20 AM – Within approximately three minutes, officers responded to the DSU and reported they had both the person and the firearm in custody. The person in custody was determined not to be a member of the University. First responders immediately took thorough, comprehensive steps to confirm there was no indication of an ongoing threat to campus.
4:04 AM – This message was sent out through the CNU Alert notification system; “CNU Police responded to a report of gunshots on campus. No known threat to the community at this time. Gun and individual are in custody.”
4:19 AM – A more specific alert was pushed out to campus directing recipients to avoid the DSU.
4:42 AM – A third alert specifically requested that people avoid the DSU north eating area portico. Both of the follow-up messages reiterated that there was no known continuing threat to the University.
5:15 AM – Emergency Operation Center (EOC) was activated.
5:34 AM – In consultation with the Emergency Policy Group (EPG), I determined the University would open and classes would be held as scheduled.
We must prepare for moments like this and we do. Our Emergency Policy Group and Emergency Management Teams represent key offices across campus and they meet monthly to review procedures. They have met twice already today. Just within the last month, many of them underwent extensive training in how to respond to on-campus emergencies.
What happens next?
- Please take a moment to review your own preparedness. If you didn’t receive the alerts, please be sure to sign up/confirm your registration with CNUAlert.info.
- Thanks to the efforts of our Dining Services, Facilities Management and Plant Operations staff, Regattas is reopening for dinner and I look forward to seeing you there. Earlier today, I visited The Commons, James River Hall, and several other campus locations.
- Tomorrow morning at 6:30 AM, I will lead a Wednesday Walk with the President, beginning at the fountain in the plaza. Look for more on that in another email later today.
- We will share updates on the criminal investigation on our website at this link.
- In the coming days, we will review how the University handled the incident and look for ways to improve our response.
It is not business as usual. Many of you were frightened and had to experience a sleepless night of worry and support services are available. Our heroic Police Officers were tested and had to make split-second decisions. Someone was hurt. A building was damaged. Our beautiful campus can seem like a sanctuary, always safe from the forces that darken the outside world. On most days and nights, it is just that. But when we do experience something ugly and menacing, we are protected by our Police and comforted by the countless ways we demonstrate through word and action how much we mean to each other. It’s what Captains do and I am deeply grateful.
— Christopher Newport University President William G. Kelly