A rookie wide receiver was cut by the Seattle Seahawks earlier this week after being charged with felony murder in the fatal shooting of a woman at a Georgia nightclub in 2018.
Tamorrion Terry, a Georgia native, was indicted last week by a grand jury along with 10 other suspects in the death of 21-year-old Za’Quavia Smith in Ashburn, Georgia, according to multiple reports.
Terry, who was an all-state wide receiver at Turner County High School in Ashburn, planned to turn himself in after cooperating with investigators and surrendering his cellphone to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation in hopes of clearing his name, ESPN reports.
Ashburn, Terry’s hometown, is located in Turner County in South Georgia, just north of Tifton along the I-75 corridor.
The shooting happened there three years ago on June 30, ahead of Terry’s redshirt freshman season at Florida State University, and erupted as the result of a battle between gangs, police said.
Smith was the only person killed among at least seven other gunshot victims at the club event called “County vs. County,” reports said.
“Basically, it boils down to they’re wearing one color, this other gang is wearing another color,” Ashburn police Major Richard Purvis told the media during the early days of the investigation, according to reports. “They’re, in technical terms or street language, they’re beefing. But it put all these other people in danger.”
Initially the Georgia Bureau of Investigation charged only one suspect — 17-year-old Jontavious Conley — with felony murder and aggravated assault, although numerous others were also suspected of opening fire with multiple rounds as a crowd of up to 200 people tried to flee.
During the three years that the investigation unfolded, Terry was able to complete his college football career.
He arrived at Florida State following the departure of head coach Jimbo Fisher.
In 2018, the same year of the shooting, he played in 12 games in which he caught 35 passes for 744 yards and eight touchdowns, making him the leading receiver on the team under head coach Willie Taggart. In 31 games over three seasons, he had 118 receptions for 2,221 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Terry was not selected by a team in the 2021 NFL Draft this past spring but he earned a spot on the Seattle Seahawks roster shortly afterward. The team released him on Wednesday in light of the charges.
Terry is the second former FSU receiver indicted on murder charges this year, according to ESPN. Travis Rudolph, who led the team in receiving in 2015 and 2016, was charged with first-degree murder in April following a fight at his Lake Park, Florida, home.
About the Author
