Name: Chester County DA, Lincoln University police officials announce charges for woman accused in fatal stabbing of student
Uploaded: 2022-02-24T07:35:49-05:00
Description: Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan and Lincoln University police officials announce charges against a 39-year-old Philadelphia woman accused of fatally stabbing a 21-year-old Lincoln senior.

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Chester County DA, Lincoln University police officials announce charges for woman accused in fatal stabbing of student

Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan and Lincoln University police officials announce charges against a 39-year-old Philadelphia woman accused of fatally stabbing a 21-year-old Lincoln senior.

LOWER OXFORD TWP, Pa. - A Philadelphia woman has been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing at Lincoln University last week.

39-year-old Nydira Smith of Philadelphia has been arrested and charged in the stabbing that left Jawine Evans, 21, dead back on Feb. 16.

Police say the incident took place at the LLC south dormitory on the campus outside of room 114, where a fight broke out.

Smith is the sister of a Lincoln University student involved in the fight, the Chester County District Attorney's Office said.

When officers arrived on the scene, they found Evans in a grassy area between the north and south sections of the building, according to the criminal complaint.

He was pronounced dead from a knife wound to the right side of his neck, police say.

Two other students, 22-year-old Eric Dickerson and 22-year-old Clifton Walker, also suffered stabbed wounds.

Detectives learned the incident stemmed from a fight and a video of the incident was circulating on social media.

In the video, Evans, Dickerson and Walker are seen, in addition to two females, according to police. The criminal complaint says Smith is seen in the video wearing a light-colored sweatshirt with a yellow and black hat and a knife in her right hand.

39-year-old Nydira Smith of Philadelphia has been charged for the fatal stabbing of a Lincoln University student.

Police say the video shows Smith looking up at Evans before "plunging the knife down from above her head a second time and into the right-side neck/chest area of Evans."

After Evans was stabbed, Smith makes two more stabbing motions, injuring Dickerson and Walker, the criminal complaint says.

Officers obtained the video of the incident from a resident of the dorm.

Detectives also gained information from interviews with Dickerson and Walker and security footage from the university's front gate.

Smith is charged with 1st-degree murder, 3rd-degree possession of an instrument of crime, aggravated assault and other related charges.

"This is a parent's worst nightmare," DA Deb Ryan said. "This senseless and tragic incident is devastating to not only the families of the victims, but the entire Lincoln University community students, staff and parents- who believed their college campus was a safe place."

Evans was a senior set to graduate in May. His family released a statement thanking investigators and expressing their grief.

"My husband and I are devastated over the loss of our beloved son Jawine. We thought he would be safe on the campus of Lincoln University, and never dreamed such a terrible thing could happen here. We're stunned at the lax security but extremely grateful to Chester County law enforcement for catching Jawine's killer, and for DA Ryna's comments showing she is taking a strong public stand to bring his killer to justice," Jawine's mother, Beverly Evans, said.

Ryan and Lincoln University officials held a press conference Thursday morning to announce the charges against Smith.

The DA's office believes the stabbing was premeditated, noting Smith drove more than one hour from Philadelphia to the campus with a knife.