Trend Feature

UC Davis researcher killed by rock throwers in Ethiopia

UC Davis officials said Wednesday that a postdoctoral researcher in the university’s plant biology department was killed Tuesday in Ethiopia when the vehicle she was riding in was stoned by protesters.

Sharon Gray, 30, was in the East African nation to attend a meeting related to her research, according to the university.

Andy Fell, a university spokesman, confirmed that Gray was the American woman who was reported killed when stones were hurled at her vehicle on the outskirts of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, on Tuesday.

The U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia issued a statement saying a passenger van was hit by rocks late Tuesday afternoon and that “one of the passengers, a U.S. citizen, was struck by a rock and subsequently died from her injury,” several overseas media outlets reported.

Crowds have attacked other vehicles since a stampede at a weekend protest killed at least 55 people, according to news reports. The protests have centered on land and political rights in Ethiopia.

Another member of the plant biology department who was traveling with Gray was not injured and is headed home, university officials said.

Siobhan Brady, an associate professor of plant biology at UC Davis and head of the Brady Lab, where Gray worked as a postdoctoral fellow, said by email Wednesday night that she was in transit from Addis Ababa to San Francisco.

She was unavailable for comment.

University officials said Gray was attending a meeting in Ethiopia to discuss the next steps in a project she was involved in with the Netherlands Institute of Ecology and other charitable organizations.

She had been at UC Davis since 2013, Fell said.

He said Gray’s husband is also a university employee.

“Even in tragedy, we hope that we all can find some comfort in the wonderful work Sharon was engaged in that will better the lives of so many around the world,” Ken Burtis, the university’s acting provost, said in a statement posted on the UC Davis Graduate Studies’ Facebook page.

The university’s plant biology department posted a memorial page on its website with dozens of photographs of Gray at www.plb.ucdavis.edu/sharongray.

Gray received her doctorate in plant biology in 2013 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which she also attended as an undergraduate.

Her research focused on studying the effects of a buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere on crops such as soybeans and tomatoes.

The U.S. State Department is assisting in returning Gray’s body to her family.

What is the angle/focus of the story and how soon into the feature does it become clear to you?

The title of this article captured my attention and quickly gave me a clear focus as to what it was about. Then the title was a segway to the lead and it gave the reader more information.

What do you think of the lead? Did it draw your interest into the story as a reader? Why or why not?

I thought the lead was informative and it grabbed my interest right away. I think people are attracted to drama and immediately the article was telling something that was very dramatic and it enticed me to read more.

What are the two best quotes in the story and why do you like those quotes?

“The U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia issued a statement saying a passenger van was hit by rocks late Tuesday afternoon and that “one of the passengers, a U.S. citizen, was struck by a rock and subsequently died from her injury,” several overseas media outlets reported.”

This quote was good because it gave a description of how the woman was killed, and also where it happened. The balance of the description an information in this quote made me want to continue reading the article.

“Her research focused on studying the effects of a buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere on crops such as soybeans and tomatoes.”

I thought this quote was interesting because it focused on why she was in Ethiopia. She was researching the effects of carbon dioxide and was attending a meeting for getting more research.

Cite two examples in the story where the writer uses description and two other examples where the writer uses information to bolster the story. In which paragraphs do you see this done?

“Crowds have attacked other vehicles since a stampede at a weekend protest killed at least 55 people, according to news reports. The protests have centered on land and political rights in Ethiopia.”

This quote educates the reader with more information as to why rocks were being thrown in the first place. I had no idea of the politics in Ethiopia and the great lengths citizens were doing to stand up for their rights.