SEE FIELDER

One dead, one hospitalized after Sunday morning hit and run

MARY BOYTE

thedmnews@gmail.com

Friends and family gathered at Christ United Methodist Church in Jackson on Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 19, to grieve the loss of Ole Miss junior Walker Fielder. Fielder was the victim of a fatal vehicular hit and run early Sunday morning, Oct. 16, at City Hall in downtown Oxford. Blanche Williamson, a UM sophomore from Raleigh, N.C., was also struck by the vehicle. She was transported to Memphis and remains hospitalized there. Two individuals have been arrested in connection with Sunday’s incident. Seth Rokitka, 24, of Collierville, Tenn., has been charged with one count of manslaughter, one count of aggravated DUI, one count of duties of driver involved in accident resulting in death and one count of duties of driver involved in accident resulting in personal injury. Rokitka appeared before a Justice Court judge, and his bond is set at $1 million. Rokitka was arrested and taken into custody Monday morning. His truck, which has been identified by Oxford police

as the vehicle that struck the victims, was found wrecked in Marshall County, Miss. Tristan Holland, 18, also of Collierville, Tenn., was arrested Sunday evening and remains in the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office Jail and awaits charges. Since the event, there have been rumors circulating on social media that the hit and run was a premeditated attack. However, OPD confirmed that Holland and Rokitka did not have any previous interaction with Fielder or Williamson, and the suspects and students were at separate establishments Saturday night before the incident. The department said that Rokitka and Holland failed to render aid to the injured students or call 911. Oxford police responded to a call at approximately 1:14 a.m. Sunday from passers-by who indicated that two people were injured in the parking lot behind City Hall. The victims were immediately taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Mississippi, where Fielder died. Neither of the men arrested for their involvement in the fatal hit and run are affiliated with the university, according to an email about the incident sent Monday to the university community by Chancellor Glenn Boyce. “While there are no words that can alleviate the deep sorrow that his friends and family are experiencing, please keep them close in your thoughts and prayers during this time of immense grief,” Boyce said. In a Monday morning press release, the Oxford Police Department expressed gratitude to the Oxford public for helping bring Holland and Rokitka into custody. “We can’t express enough thanks and gratitude to the community, business owners and our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners for their assistance,” the department said. Mayor Robyn Tannehilll posted a heartfelt address on Facebook Sunday evening urging Oxford citizens to pray for Fiedler’s family and the female victim’s recovery. “Oxford is a community that comforts those that need comforting,” Tannehill said. “Perhaps from practice and from times of trials that we wish we could pray away, but nevertheless, Oxford always steps up when things are hard and when people need us. These two families need us. They need our prayers.”

PHOTO COURTESY: OXFORD POLICE DEPARTMENT One of the persons of interest is shown in security footage stills driving a double-cab pick up truck.

FIELDER

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“Although I have had different relationships with Walker throughout the past few years, he was ultimately and most importantly one of the very best friends I, and many others, have ever had,” Yoste said. Yoste said Fielder had a love for others that was felt by everyone he knew. “Walker Fielder was real. He never tried to be someone that he wasn’t. Always loyal and kind and never met a stranger. He was a man of good character and truly loved everyone,” Yoste said. “We are all better people because of the impact Walker had in our lives.” Lizzy Childress, an Ole Miss student, was one of Fielder’s long-time friends. Childress considered Fielder to be “her person” and said she is grateful for his friendship. “I truly don’t remember a time when he wasn’t a part of my life. We both grew up in the Sheffield area (of Jackson). Our original crew consisted of Sydney Guy, Ashlie Henderson, Sara Evelyn McClintock, Will Thomas, Cyrus Manning and Walker. We were nicknamed the ‘Sheffield crew’,” Childress said. Childress, like Yoste, lovingly referred to Fielder as “goofy” and someone who never met a stranger. “Walker was simply the best. He was goofy, kind and made any serious situation light-hearted. He was the kind of guy who never met a stranger. He loved his people hard and never left a conversation without telling me he loved me. I was so lucky to be loved by him,” Childress said. Childress hopes people remember Walker’s smile and positive outlook. “That boy always had the biggest smile on his face. I think everyone should try to be more like him in the way he never took a day for granted and truly lived life to the fullest. I can’t wait to get a big Fielder hug again one day,” Childress said.

Sydney Guy and Zipporah Hawkins, Ole Miss students, were also among Fielder’s closest friends. Responding together to the Daily Mississippian, Guy and Hawkins said they had walked through every stage of life with him. They remember him as genuine and selfless. “Walker was the most genuine person we knew. He was by far the most selfless person and would drop anything he was doing to be there for someone else. His energy and smile were contagious. He never failed to be the light in all of our lives. We love and miss him so much, and there will never be a day that goes by that we won’t think about him,” Guy and Hawkins said. Black ribbons gently sway in the cold breeze on the columns of the Sigma Chi Fraternity house and other fraternity and sorority houses. The loss of Fielder radiates throughout the campus. Out of this tragedy, his friends believe comes a reminder to live everyday like Fielder did. “Walker lived every single day like it was his last. He made everyone around him feel so loved and happy,” Guy and Hawkins said. “If we learn anything from this tragedy, we have to live like Walker did. He was just truly the most beautiful soul, and we were so blessed to be loved by him.”