ACU police were among the first responders to a fatal stabbing earlier this summer at The Grove Apartments.
ACUPD, along with Abilene PD, answered a call at 2:20 a.m. on July 27 at the complex on Judge Ely Blvd. Kaleb Cory, a 19-year-old Abilene resident, was stabbed and later pronounced dead at Hendrick Medical Center.
“Multiple APD units responded to the call, but they requested ACUPD because of the apartment’s nearness to campus,” said Jimmy Ellison, ACU chief of police.
Ellison said the conflict started when a group of people arrived, uninvited, to a party already in progress. When they were asked to leave, many of the party’s guests moved outside to the parking lot where the fight occurred.
APD arrested the person allegedly responsible for Cory’s death at 10:15 p.m the same day.
“D’Angelo Bell was arrested for capital murder and aggravated assault,” Abilene Chief of Police Stan Standridge told Big Country Homepage.
It is not yet known if Bell knew Cory or what the fight was about. Ellison deferred many questions to APD because it is their investigation. Many details of the incident are not available to the public as it is still under investigation.
Though none of the parties involved were affiliated with ACU, many students and parents have called ACUPD over the past few weeks. Parents are concerned about the safety of students living in the apartments and question if the stabbing is grounds for residents to terminate leases.
“While there are a lot of calls for ACUPD about loud parties, this type of call is extremely rare,” Ellison said.
Ellison warns that it is important for students living off-campus to be cautious about throwing and attending parties because tragedies happen quickly.
“Parties often start with good intentions, but with social media it is easy for parties to grow and get out of control,” Ellison said.
Melody Landrum, junior elementary education major from Frisco, is not worried about her safety while living off-campus.
“That sort of stuff can happen anywhere, and Abilene is no exception,” Landrum said. “I know the police are doing their best to protect us.”
