NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A Belmont University student has died after she was shot in the head while walking in a park by campus.
Thursday afternoon, a group of friends and others close to Jillian came through Edgehill Memorial Community Gardens to mourn her loss.
Escorted by Belmont security, they took a moment to kneel down and pray, shed tears, and hug one another.
The suspect in the case, Shaquille Taylor, was out of jail after he was deemed mentally incompetent to stand trial in an unrelated case. It's left many people wondering how this could happen.
Earlier in the day, student Adylein Hunt went to the park where Jillian was killed to reflect and write a prayer to share with her sorority.
"Dear God, the Bible says you are near to the brokenhearted and save those crushed in spirit. We call out to you in this time of deep sorrow and grief that you give us the strength to bear this heavy burden."
Students are mourning an unimaginable loss.
“I know that we live in an evil and broken place and that really the only hope in this situation could be found like in God to me," Hunt said. "We are at a loss for words, and I don’t know what else to do but just to sit and be and look to God."
"It broke me," added 15-year-old Kendra Pruitt, a neighbor who heard the gunshots that day.
"I lost a family member to a bullet and I know how that feels. So I'm grieving for them."
Jillian’s aunt, Geri Wainwright, sent NewsChannel5 a statement saying Jillian had a beautiful soul, loved life, and "her fearlessness, spontaneity, love of laughter, kindness and compassion make her irreplaceable to our family."
Losing Jillian will change the fabric of their lives forever.
Meanwhile here in Nashville, students will lean on their faith and each other to get them through this time.
"It’s something we won’t understand like ever," Hunt said. "But I think that in times of deep sorrow, there are times that bring everyone together, so I’m just praying for that."
