NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Nashville authorities are considering new charges against the man accused of shooting and now killing a Belmont University student.
Jillian Ludwig was fatally shot Tuesday afternoon near the university's campus, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said. Family members told NBC affiliate WSMV in Nashville that she died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Shaquille Taylor is charged in connection to the shooting. He is facing charges of aggravated assault and evidence tampering, and MNPD said it was working with Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk to upgrade those charges since Ludwig was dead.
“We are in discussion with the District Attorney’s Office concerning modified charges against Shaquille Taylor,” MNPD wrote.
MNPD said Taylor was standing on a street when he shot at a car traveling on 13th Ct. at the same time Ludwig was walking in a park located on nearby Deford Bailey Avenue. They said one of Taylor's shots hit the student in the head, critically wounding her.
WSMV found Taylor could have been one of hundreds of Nashville criminals who can't be prosecuted because they are deemed incompetent to stand trial. District attorneys are forbidden by the Supreme Court to prosecute people who are determined not to be fit to understand the trial process or crimes they may have committed, WSMV said.
In April, the Nashville District Attorney’s Office prosecuted Taylor on an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge. At a competency hearing, three doctors unanimously testified that Taylor was incompetent to stand trial, Funk said.
“State and Federal law prohibit prosecution of persons found to be incompetent, so therefore Judge Angelita Dalton was mandated to dismiss the case,” Funk said in a statement. “Because the doctors did not find Mr. Taylor met the standards for involuntary commitment, he was released from custody on May 19, 2023.”
WSMV reported Taylor's history dates back to 2010, with his first charges including aggravated robbery and possession of a handgun. Taylor was set to have a court date on Thursday morning.
Ludwig was a freshman at Belmont University, and family members told WSMV that she was a music business major as well as a musician.
“(Jillian’s) fearlessness, spontaneity, love of laughter, kindness and compassion make her irreplaceable to our family. Losing her would forever change the fabric of our lives,” said Geri Wainwright, her aunt. “So, we have to ask, why was this man free? What kind of world do we live in where it’s not safe to take a walk near your college dorm in broad daylight? How could someone so carelessly dim the light of a star destined to shine so bright?”