A Chicago Ph.D. student studying criminology shot and killed her ex-boyfriend at his Washington, DC, home, police stated.
What We Know:
- The South Bend Tribune has reported that Nijinsky Dix, 37, a student attending the University of Illinois in Chicago, has been charged with second-degree murder in the killing Saturday of 44-year-old Terry Hickman, whom she dated for three months.
- Police responded to gunfire reports before 5:30 p.m. at the apartment complex in the nation’s capital. The outlet has reported, they found Dix kneeling beside Hickman’s bullet-covered body, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
- Police mention Dix held a gun in her left hand, which officers ordered her to put down. The Tribune reported that she was also on speakerphone with someone who classified themselves to officials as her mother.
- Her mother told officers that Dix had called her and stated, “He pushed me, and I shot him.” NBC Chicago reported that Dix, when taken to the hospital, had complained of memory loss and back pain but did demonstrate signs of being assaulted.
- According to the outlet, as she was interrogated about the event, Dix expressed her memory problems and asked them for information to help her remember. Reports mentioned when she was presented with a photo of Hickman, Dix started to cry and continuously shouted, “Get it away from me.”
- Hickman’s family told police that he and Dix had dated for three months before the pair broke up in May, the outlet reported. They claimed that Dix had started “stalking” her former flame after the break-up. It’s unknown how or why Dix showed up in Washington, DC.
- According to colleges, she has been seeking a doctorate in criminology, law, and justice in Chicago while also working as an employee at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, where she’s the director of a talent search program.
Reports have stated Notre Dame is informed of Dix’s arrest and will collaborate with law enforcement as needed. Police have said Dix also faces charges for the property of unregistered ammunition and the property of an unregistered firearm.
