NORFOLK — Mohammed Bailor Jalloh opened fire in a classroom at Old Dominion University in March, killing Army Lt. Col. Brandon Shah and wounding two students. Federal authorities are investigating the shooting as an act of terror.

During the incident, Shah, who was the head of the school's ROTC program, was leading a class. Other cadets attacked Jalloh after he began firing, and one cadet stabbed Jalloh to death.

Jalloh had attended Old Dominion University intermittently until 2013. He pleaded guilty in 2017 to a federal charge of attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and served about eight years in prison. Jalloh returned to the university after serving his sentence. The university stated it had no knowledge of Jalloh's criminal history prior to the shooting.

After the shooting, Old Dominion University sent a questionnaire to over 23,000 students, asking them to disclose any criminal histories. The university asserted it was authorized to issue this survey under Virginia law § 23.1-407.1, which passed the General Assembly in 2021 and became effective in 2022. Lashrecse Aird, a state senator and former state secretary of education, described the university's referrals to the statute as "a scapegoat" in explaining its actions.

Aird said the legislation had not been intended to empower the university to send such a questionnaire. She stated the law decouples the application and enrollment process, barring universities from checking a prospective student's background at the application phase. Institutions are empowered to check backgrounds after an applicant has been admitted but before they are enrolled under the law. "This actually does the opposite of what they're saying," Aird said. "This gives them full ability to have their process work in a way that could have been to their benefit."

Gerard Robinson, a University of Virginia law professor and former secretary of education for Virginia, said the law aligns with the "Ban the Box" campaign, which sought to remove the mandatory field on job applications requiring disclosure of criminal records. "It's a common practice," Robinson said. "Nothing in the current law stops schools like ODU from having done a criminal background check on students once accepted." The law carved specific exemptions for programs pertaining to the ROTC or law schools. Robinson also said background checks would not entirely prevent the type of violence that unfolded inside Constant Hall.

Old Dominion University administrators said the criminal history questionnaire was voluntary and that the university would not punish students for failing to respond. It remains unclear how many students responded to the questionnaire and how the information provided by students is being used. Old Dominion University declined to comment on the matter.