Questions in David Shannon death remain unanswered

Community members are still waiting for answers about the death of UNC freshman David Shannon, who fell from concrete machinery in Carrboro in the early hours of Oct. 27.

Shannon was found dead by friends at the Ready Mixed Concrete Plant on Guthrie Avenue after they had not heard from him all day.

Police say he fell 40 feet after climbing machinery at the plant and died where he fell.

The Carrboro Police Department has not released an update on developments in the ongoing investigation since its report on Oct. 30.

Lt. Chris Atack, spokesman for Carrboro police, said police have not ruled out any possible causes.
But, as of early November, Shannon’s family was hopeful that a search of his cellphone and computer would reveal more details about his death.

David Shannon’s older brother, Stephen Shannon, said the police department obtained a court order on Nov. 7 to search his laptop and phone.

Questions about how he ended up at the plant remain unanswered.

“The biggest hole in the night is how he ended up there,” Stephen Shannon said in early November.
He said his brother was last seen at a pregame party on McCauley Street before the Alpha Delta Pi Sorority Mallard Ball on Oct. 26.

“The other missing piece is what happened from the time he left the party at McCauley to the time he got to the concrete plant,” Stephen Shannon said.

David Shannon never made it to the event at La Residence Restaurant and Bar. He also never showed up to a tailgate at the Chi Phi fraternity house before the UNC-N.C. State football game on Oct. 27.

Shannon was a pledge in the Chi Phi fraternity.

“I texted him Saturday after the UNC game about Giovani Bernard’s punt return at the end of the game and didn’t get a response, but I thought he was just enjoying the victory with his friends and forgot to text me back,” Stephen Shannon said.

After David Shannon didn’t respond to text messages or phone calls, a group of his friends tracked the location of his cellphone and found his body at 10:34 p.m. on Oct. 27.

At a vigil held on Oct. 29, friends and family gathered to mourn and remember Shannon.

And He’s Not Here held a benefit night on Halloween to raise money for the David Shannon Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Stuart Castillo, who was in Shannon’s Chi Phi pledge class, said David Shannon had a special knack for making friends.

“David was a good guy with a big heart,” he said. “David was the heart and soul in our Chi Phi pledge class.”

Contact the desk editor at
city@dailytarheel.com.