Man given 5 life sentences in killing of 3 UVA football players

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WRIC) -- Twenty-six-year-old Christopher Darnell Jones, Jr., who killed three University of Virginia (UVA) football players in 2022, has been given five life sentences after five days of testimony.

On day five of witness testimony -- Friday, Nov. 21 -- Jones was given five consecutive life sentences and 23 additional years in prison in the 2022 killing of three UVA football players.

Jones was given a life sentence for each of his three first-degree murder charges and each of his two aggravated malicious wounding charges.

He was given an additional 23 years in prison for firearms-related charges.

The five-day sentencing hearing began on Monday, Nov. 17, 2025. On its first day, the Commonwealth opened by saying Jones was facing at least 23 years of mandatory time behind bars and that he would be 46 years old when released.

Twenty-seven people have testified, ranging from victim impact statements from family members of the men who died, people who survived the shooting, Jones's uncle and cousin, two of his mentors, and the doctor who mentally evaluated him following the shooting.

In the evening on Nov. 13, 2022, when coming back from a university field trip to Washington, DC, Jones shot and killed 22-year-old D’Sean Perry, 20-year-old Devin Chandler and 20-year-old Lavel Davis Jr.

Jones fled the scene and wasn’t arrested until around 11 hours later in Henrico County.

Michael Hollins, also a UVA football player at the time, and Marlee Morgan, a student, were wounded.

A full recap of each day of testimony can be found here.