Youngstown Vindicator on 10 Feb 2011

JAMAIL EARL JOHNSON


GIRARD – Services will be Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011, at 10 a.m. at Beeghly Center on the Youngstown State University Campus for Mr. Jamail Earl Johnson, 25, who entered eternal life on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011.

Mr. Johnson, lovingly known as "Double J" and "J-Roc," was born April 19, 1985, in Stratford, N.J., a son of Earl C. and Shirlene Pruden Johnson.

He was a 2003 graduate of Liberty High School and was a student at Youngstown State University majoring in Business Management. Jamail was to graduate from YSU in May. He was employed as a tutor with YSU and in retail sales with the Footlocker in Southern Park Mall. He was a member of the Higher Praise Covenant Church, where he served as an Usher and on the Youth Ministry Team. He was also a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.

He leaves to forever cherish and hold dear in their hearts, his mother and stepfather, Shirlene and Sidney Hill of Liberty; father and stepmother, Earl and Tammy Johnson; sister and brothers, Bruce Alexander (Jada Hightower) of Columbus, Jawawn Traylor of Boston, Sidney M. Hill, Tre'Sean Johnson and Seraeah Johnson, all of Youngstown; grandparents, Carolyn Fort of Girard, Ira and Dorothy Hood, Arletha Fort, Catherine Johnson and Anthony and Sylvia Traylor, all of Youngstown; great-grandmothers, Aszlina Beedles and Portia Hood, both of Youngstown; a host of aunts and uncles, including Lillian and Michael Davila who was like a mother and father to him; a special aunt and uncle, Lynn Johnson and Michael (Sandy) Cobb; cousins, including Wesley Collier, who was like a brother; godmother, Geneva Fort; his girlfriend, Jaylaunna Davis of Canton; and a host of loving family and friends.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Roger Fort, Ethel Gindratt, William Pruden and Joseph Johnson; and great-grandparents, Joseph and Willa M. Gindratt and Robert Beedles.

Friends may view on Friday from noon to 8 p.m. at the L.E. Black, Phillips & Holden Funeral Home and on Saturday from 8 to 9:20 a.m. at YSU's Beeghly Center, where the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. will hold a memorial service from 9:20 to 9:50 a.m.

Funeral services will start precisely at 10 a.m



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From CNN February 6, 2011

(CNN) -- A senior at Ohio's Youngstown State University was killed and 11 other people were wounded in an off-campus shooting early Sunday, authorities said.

All but three of the wounded were treated and released, said Tina Creighton, a spokeswoman for St. Elizabeth's Health Center in Youngstown. Six of the injured were students.

One victim, shot near an ear, was critically wounded and the others suffered nonlife-threatening injuries, Youngstown Police Chief Jimmy Hughes said.

Police identified the dead man as 25-year-old Jamail Johnson of nearby Girard, Ohio. Johnson was shot once in the back of the head and several times in the lower body, Dr. Joseph Ohr, a forensic pathologist at the Mahoning County Coroner's Office, told CNN.

Police have notified Johnson's family, Hughes said.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich issued a statement saying he was "shocked and saddened" by the shooting and has offered state resources to the university and law enforcement.

"I join all Ohioans in expressing my deepest sympathy to the victims, their families and to the entire university community," Kasich said.
One killed, 11 injured in off-campus shooting

The shooting happened at an off-campus house where members of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity were holding a party, Hughes said.

Police, called at 3:39 a.m., said shots were fired "indiscriminately" from outside the house. Authorities found multiple shell casings from two semiautomatic handguns, one a .40-caliber and the other a .45-caliber, Hughes said.

He expects to have arrest warrants for two suspects issued by the end of the day and "hopefully, we'll have them in custody soon after that," Hughes said.

Witnesses identified two possible suspects, both with ties to the area, he said.

"There were some unhappy guests. People at the party recognized them. Two of them were ejected," the chief said, adding they are not believed to be students.

The two who were ejected returned and "started lighting up the place," Hughes said.

Three of the victims are 17 and the oldest is 31, Hughes said. Three others are 19 and four are 20.

University spokesman Ron Cole said there was no threat to the campus, but campus police have stepped up their presence "as a precaution."

Youngstown is about 75 miles southeast of Cleveland.

Johnson's friends described him Sunday as a nice person who didn't get into trouble.

"He wasn't the person that you had to be worried about when you went out," said David Oliveira, who isn't a student at Youngstown but who knew Johnson from his hometown. "He wasn't the type of guy to get into conflicts."

James Baker, who attended Youngstown last spring, said Johnson was a "real good dude" who was going to graduate this spring.

"He had goals. He had plans to open up a business," Baker told CNN, adding Johnson was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"I'm hurting for him right now," Baker said. "I'm just surprised he had to be the one in the crossfire."

Hughes said the shooting is a surprise.

"It's sad because young people here are trying to turn around a lot of things," he said. "That campus is a bright shining star."

CNN's Nick Valencia, John Branch, Susan Candiotti and Ross Levitt contributed to this report.