As thousands of UNC Wilmington and Cape Fear Community College students are shuffling back to class this week one notable absence is still being felt throughout the community. Joshua Proutey, a student at CFCC, was shot and killed in downtown Wilmington during a robbery in the early morning of Dec. 13, 2012.

Christopher Daniel Cromartie, 23, Jasmine NicoleDottin, 19, Quintel Raheem Grady, 22 and Daniel Edward Henry, 17 have been charged with Proutey’smurder in the first degree, robbery with a dangerous weapon, attempted burglary and conspiracy to robbery with dangerous weapon.

Cromartie, Dottin and Grady face the potential of the death penalty if convicted, but because Henry is a minor he would not face capital punishment.

Cromartie, Henry and Dottin attempted a home invasion late Dec. 12 but fled when the homeowners were alerted. The potential robbers later met up with Grady before heading to the downtown area. 

A woman leaving a downtown business was the second would-be victim but became aware of the group stalking her and turned into a gated yard to call 911. The group abandoned the attempted robbery a second time. The woman did not complete her call, and police were not notified. 

Proutey was the third and final person the group of four approached.  Proutey was walking to his car in a parking lot after finishing work as a night manager at the Hannah Block Community Arts Center when he was confronted by Cromartie, Henry and Grady. Dottin was close by in the getaway car. 

They asked Proutey to produce his wallet while Grady pointed a gun at him. Proutey complied and the group procured two $5 bills. When Proutey was asked to get back into his car, the CFCC student apparently froze. Grady then shot Proutey in response to the student’s hesitation. Proutey died from the gunshot wound. 

“The entire Cape Fear Community College family was devastated to learn of the loss of JoshuaProutey. Our deepest sympathies are with the families and friends of this young man during this extremely difficult time,” said David Harden, the Public Information Officer at CFCC in an e-mail statement. 

The murder of Joshua Proutey has attracted extensive media attention with close follow up on the court hearings of the four suspects. Captain Christopher Bertram of the UNCW Police Department attributes this to the nature of the homicide.

“This should have just been a robbery, but for whatever reason the suspects chose to take his life,” Bertram said.

However, from 2002 to 2012 the overall crime rate for downtown decreased by 36 percent despite the population growth of 33 percent in that area according to the City of Wilmington City Council Website.    

On Jan. 7, 2013 Wilmington Police Chief RalphEvangelous went before the city council to propose a 12-man task force that would address areas of high crime in the city. If accepted, the council would pay for the additional manpower needed to supply the task force, officially named the Mobile Field Force.

According to Detective Kevin Smith of the WPD the proposal for the Mobile Field Force was being developed before Proutey was murdered, but the homicide presented the opportunity for it to be brought before the city council shortly after.   

Safety measures and precautions are emphasized regularly on UNCW’s campus to ensure the security of students, faculty and staff and prevent the likelihood of a tragedy like that of Joshua Prouteyoccurring on campus. Lighting is an important example of those safety measures. 

“The best thing that we have going here is that all of our parking lots are well lit,” said Captain Bertram.  “We do have really good visibility here on campus, it is very well lit.”

According to the UNCWPD website there are also approximately 100 emergency call boxes on campus. These call boxes can be used for an escort, car assistance, directions or if a person is experiencing an emergency.

Captain Bertram also highlights basic safety rules that students should take: do not walk alone if it can be avoided, be aware of the surroundings and keep a cell phone handy.

Earlier in December a UNCW student witnessed two suspects attempting to break into a car that the student knew belonged to someone else. The student confronted the two perpetrators, who then proceeded to assault him.

Although the student’s actions were heroic, Captain Bertram does not recommend someone intervening in a crime unless it is their job.

“If you see something that doesn’t look right or something just doesn’t feel right, call us,” Captain Bertram said.    

The campus police might have a better chance to advance on the perpetrators in the act instead of after the crime took place as with the car break in and assault.

The two suspects were later taken into custody after being caught performing additional car break-ins off campus.

As the community continues to come to terms with the loss of life in Joshua Proutey they are also beginning a healing process.

CFCC held a remembrance ceremony to honor the memory of Proutey and provide his fellow students and the community support during their grief process.