Ex-FSU receiver Tamorrion Terry among 11 indicted in 2018 Georgia nightclub killing

A grand jury in Georgia last week indicted former Florida State wide receiver Tamorrion Terry and 10 others on charges they killed a 21-year-old woman in a 2018 gang-related mass shooting, according to court records obtained by the Miami Herald.

The Seattle Seahawks, who signed Terry as a rookie free agent in May, quietly cut him Wednesday.

The murder victim, Za’ Quavia Smith, was among at least seven people shot at the Studio 2.0 nightclub in Ashburn, Georgia, in June of 2018.

Days later, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrested Jontavious Coley and charged the then-17 year-old with felony murder and aggravated assault. Police at the time said that Coley was one of several people who fired multiple rounds into a crowd trying to flee the club.

“Basically, it boils down to they’re wearing one color, this other gang is wearing another color,” Ashburn police Major Richard Purvis told reporters in the early days of the investigation. “They’re, in technical terms or street language, they’re beefing. But it put all these other people in danger.”

Authorities at the time were convinced Coley didn’t act alone. But it wasn’t until last week that a Turner County Superior Court grand jury indicted Terry and nine others along with Coley for the crime.

As of Thursday morning, only Coley was locked up, according to a search of the Turner County jail website.

The other co-defendents, per court documents: Devascea Blanks, Martez Edwards, Tavis Greene, Malik High, Devian Morgan, Quantavious Morgan, Brandon Nixon, Demetrice Smith and Damias Ward. All 11 have been charged with felony murder, a charge applicable when a death, even accidental, occurs in the commission of a felony.

It’s unclear if warrants had yet been served as of Thursday morning.

Terry, Edwards and Smith appear to have been teammates at Turner County High School, where Terry earned a scholarship offer to Florida State as a three-star recruit.

The shooting occurred the summer before Terry’s redshirt freshman year at Florida State. He would go on to appear in 31 games for the Seminoles over the next three years, catching 118 passes for 2,221 yards and 18 touchdowns.

He entered the NFL Draft in 2021 as a potential late-round pick, but ultimately went undrafted. On May 14, Terry signed with the Seahawks as a rookie free agent.

On Wednesday, the Seahawks waived him without an injury designation.