Shooting at Kentucky State University leaves 1 dead, 1 hurt and a
suspect in custody, officials say
[December 10, 2025]
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — One student was killed and another
was critically wounded in a shooting at a residence hall at Kentucky
State University on Tuesday, and a suspect who is not a student at the
school has been arrested, officials said.
The shooting happened around 3 p.m. and was an “isolated incident,”
Scott Tracy, assistant chief of police for Frankfort, said during a news
conference Tuesday evening. Tracy said police swiftly responded to the
shooting.
"There are no active safety concerns on campus at this time,” he said.
Authorities haven’t publicly addressed a motive.
Frankfort police said Jacob Lee Bard was booked into jail on murder and
first-degree assault charges in connection with the shooting. Police
said Bard is from Evansville, Indiana, which is about 150 miles (241.4
kilometers) west of Frankfort.
Bard was not listed in online county court records and jail records did
not name an attorney for him. The public defender’s office and
prosecutor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for
information on who can comment on his behalf or whether he has an
attorney.
Video from WLKY-TV in Louisville showed multiple police vehicles outside
a cluster of dormitories and crime scene tape in a courtyard at the
school in Frankfort, the state’s capital city.
One student who was shot at the residence hall, Whitney M. Young Jr.
Hall, is in critical condition but is stable, according to the
university. The school is not immediately releasing the names of the
students.
“We are in close contact with the families and are providing every
available support to them,” the school said in a statement, adding that
counseling and support services are available.
Gov. Andy Beshear said in a video message posted on X that the shooting
“appears to be an isolated incident" and that "there is no ongoing
threat."
“Violence has no place in our commonwealth or country. Let’s please pray
for the families affected and for our KSU students. Let’s also pray for
a world where these things don’t happen," he said.
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Law enforcement responds to a shooting at Whitney Moore Young Jr.
Hall on Kentucky State University's campus in Frankfort, Ky.,
Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. (Hannah Brown/The State Journal via AP)
Classes, final exams and campus activities at the university have
been canceled for the rest of the week, according to the school. The
fall term was scheduled to end Friday, according to the school
website.
“Students may return home if they choose,” the school said in a
statement. “Additional guidance will be communicated as soon as
possible.”
University President Koffi C. Akakpo called it a “senseless
tragedy.”
“We’re mourning the loss of one of our students,” he said during the
news conference Tuesday evening. “As a parent I cannot imagine
receiving the call I placed today to the parents.”
The shooting was the second in four months in the same area of the
university.
Someone fired multiple shots from a vehicle near the same residence
hall on Aug. 17, striking two people that the university said
weren’t students. Frankfort police said one victim was treated for
minor injuries and a second sustained serious injuries. The dorm and
at least one vehicle were damaged by gunfire.
Kentucky State is a public historically Black university with about
2,200 students. Lawmakers authorized the school’s creation in 1886.
The school sits about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) east of the Capitol
building.
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