Matt Shaw, 21, who just walked across the stage in Central New York to get his college diploma in May, was shot to death in New York City Wednesday night.
Shaw graduated from LeMoyne College and police say he had gone to a store for a snack about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday. Then, a bullet struck him and killed him. "He was a good kid," his mother Paula Shaw-Leary, 60, told the Daily News.
"He studied hard," she added.
Shaw's death capped an incredibly violent 24 hours in New York City, which saw 21 people shot between Wednesday and Thursday of this week. Police sources have told reporters in New York City they do not believe Shaw was the intended target.
Shaw earned his bachelor's of science in business administration and finance at Le Moyne College, school officials told the website DNAinfo.com.
"What distinguished him was his seriousness of purpose and his work ethic," said Carl Thomas, director of the higher education opportunity program at the college. "He was always focused on excelling academically.
