UT Martin alum Ellie Young died on Saturday in a shooting the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is calling “apparently domestic-related.”
Ellie was participating in a breast cancer awareness walk at Shelby Farms Park, in Memphis when she was shot and killed.
Authorities arrested Young’s ex-boyfriend Jackson Hopper, 26, and charged him with murder. Hopper was arraigned in a Memphis court Monday and pleaded not guilty.
Young, who was 22, graduated from UT Martin in May 2024 and recently started medical school in Memphis. She was from Henning, Tennessee.
The UT Martin community is also mourning Ellie’s death. Chancellor Yancy Freeman released this statement.
“The UT Martin family is greatly saddened by this accomplished graduate’s death. Ellie touched many lives as a student, and she was focused on a medical career where she could continue to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Our deepest condolences go out to her family, many friends, and her classmates at the UT Health Science Center.”
