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Gun was registered to suspect's dad

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A press conference was held after Central Michigan University shooting suspect James Eric Davis, Jr. was taken into police custody Saturday.
A gun used to kill two people inside a Central Michigan University dorm was registered to the father of suspect James Eric Davis, Jr., according to CMU police during a press conference Saturday at the university.
CMU police chief Bill Yeagley confirmed a gun recovered at the scene was registered to Davis’s father, James Eric Davis, Sr., a Bellwood police officer.
James Eric Davis, Sr. and his wife, Diva Jeneen Davis, were identified as the victims of the shooting by Central Michigan Police.
Yeagley said the gun’s presence on campus was a violation of CMU’s weapons policy, which states only law enforcement on active duty are able to be on campus armed.
“What we know for sure that the gun was registered to his father, and we saw that for sure he came from the parking lot into the residence hall,” Yeagley said.
James Eric Davis, Jr. was captured early Saturday morning after fleeing the scene.
Yeagley said police received a tip from a train company that operators noticed a subject standing near the tracks just after midnight.
Police responded and took Davis into custody, Yeagley said he appeared to be hypothermic and was not making a lot sense, so police transported him to the hospital.
He is in custody and under guard until medical professionals clear him for transport. Yeagley said he will be lodged at the Isabella County Jail.
Police interaction with Davis began Thursday, when he told a CMU community policing officer stationed in his residence hall that he was frightened someone he knew got a gun and that they were going to hurt him, according to Yeagley.
“Mr Davis was very vague…” Yeagley said, “Everything was very vague, so we got other officers involved.”
Yeagley said officers obtained a name and reviewed footage of Davis riding down the elevators and laughing with this individual, but when they stopped the individual Davis named to see if there was threat, police determined this person had no registered weapon and they were not able to see risk for anyone.
When officers told Davis they determined there was no threat, but asked how they could make him feel safe, Yeagley said Davis informed them he would be going home in the morning.
However, around three to four hours later, Yeagley said officers in the area saw Davis in the hallway with a number of suitcases and bags, acting in a fashion “that is not reasonable or logical.”
An officer then asked Davis to call his parents, and Yeagley said the officer spoke to his mother about what they observed and shared concern that it might be drugs. Yeagley said Davis’s mother shared this concern and said she and his father would be coming up to campus right away, officers then took Davis to the hospital to get checked out.
“He stayed until the following morning when he was picked up by his parents and came back to Campbell Hall…” Yeagley said. “There is one witness who stated Mr. Davis was seen coming from the parking lot into the residence hall with a gun in his hand.”
Yeagley said the gun was then taken up to the fourth floor of Campbell Hall where police believe he shot and killed his father and his mother, before leaving on foot and moving north along the railroad tracks.
Mt. Pleasant City Police Director Paul Lauria said a perimeter was set up once the suspect left campus and entered the city’s jurisdiction. He said they surrounded the railroad tracks and conducted a search of Mill Pond Park.
He said they also worked with Mt. Pleasant Public Schools and they instituted a lock own while the suspect was at large. He said parents picked up students at dismissal with police presence, and rotating rolling patrols were in effect with the use of personnel from Michigan State Police until the tip came in from the train company.
Mt. Pleasant mayor Allison Lents was also present, and commended the community for their response in light of tragedy and cooperation with law enforcement.
“We’re an amazing example of how in adverse times, we can take care of each other,” she said.
CMU President George E. Ross said the university will be responding to this incident by re-doubling their safety efforts and providing students with professional counseling available after they return from spring break.
Ross commended the law enforcement officers from various agencies, lauded the campus community for locking down within minutes and sheltering in place, and also extended his condolences to the Davis family.
He said CMU’s campus and community is traumatized after yesterday.
“We read about shooters on campuses across this country and communities, we talk about it, we practice what would happen if it happens, here, and never envisions it could happen at CMU. We are a safe community, we are a safe campus. but yesterday we demonstrated our ability to deal with the inconceivable,” he said.
“… We’re not done yet, there were thousands of people on campus yesterday, and they’re going to be dealing with this for the rest of their lives.”
Ross also thanked Gov. Rick Snyder for his response to the incident yesterday and for coming to the campus.
Reports of shots fired on the fourth floor of Campbell Hall, a residence hall in CMU’s Towers Complex, arose Friday morning.
The university and police confirmed two victims, who were not students, had been shot.
The campus and the surrounding town were subsequently placed on lock down, students were told to stay off campus or shelter in place while the suspect remained at large.
More: Roommate of CMU shooting suspect: ‘I think my roommate just shot his mom’
Cameras in the common area and dorm exists recorded the suspected, later identified as 19-year-old Davis, a CMU sophomore, leaving the residence hall, heading north and running along train tracks, police said.
The two victims have since been identified as Davis’s parents, Bellewood police officer James Eric Davis Sr. and his wife Diva Jeneen Davis.
Friday was the last day of regular classes before spring break, and university officials directed parents to the Comfort Inn on South Mission Street where university staff was on site to support families.

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