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Sierra Jenkins, 25-year-old Reporter, Killed in Va. Mass Shooting

She was one of five people hit by bullets outside a pizzeria in her hometown of Norfolk

Sierra Jenkins, a 25-year-old reporter who wrote for the Virginian-Pilot newspaper and had previously worked for CNN, was one of two people killed in a mass shooting outside a restaurant over the weekend in Norfolk, Va.Jenkins was among five people in total who were shot when gunfire rang out following an argument at Chichoโ€™s Pizza Backstage, according to the newspaper. She had just recently celebrated her birthday and had been out eating with a friend when the shooting began, according to the paperโ€™s reporting on the incident.Tragically, Jenkinsโ€™ editor heard about the shooting over the Virginian Pilotโ€™s newsroom police scanner and attempted to call her to cover the shooting, unaware that Jenkins was one of the victims.

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From the Virginian-Pilot

Saturday would have been Sierra Jenkinsโ€™ turn to cover the breaking news shift for The Virginian-Pilot.

When an editor learned early Saturday that several people had been shot in downtown Norfolk, he called Jenkins repeatedly to ask her to cover it. But she couldnโ€™t be reached.

Norfolk police havenโ€™t named any suspects. The National Association of Black Journalists, which represents more than 3,000 working journalists and of which Jenkins was a member, issued a statement about her passing.

โ€œThe NABJ family is wrapping our arms around Sierraโ€™s family, friends and colleagues. This is a tragic loss of a blossoming reporter with a beautiful spirit who had already begun to make her mark in the industry,โ€ said NABJ President Dorothy Tucker. โ€œWe are saddened that such a horrific act ended her life and career too soon.โ€Jenkins was the rare reporter who was actually working in her own hometown. She had previously interned at Atlanta Magazine and worked at CNN, moving back home for a gig covering education at the Virginian-Pilot two years ago. Memorial services havenโ€™t been announced.

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