Durham 911 News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

>> exactly. >> reporter: in fact, denita had won a "new york times" fellowship. her close friend and classmate edythe kearns. >> denita just always knew what she wanted. she always had a vision and a goal. and she would make a plan and stick to it and take it step by step until she met that goal. >> reporter: denita lived in the campus crossings apartments, near the university. around 8am, a 9-1-1 call came in from another student at the same complex. >> durham 911, where is your emergency? >> i think this girl just fell down the stairs. she's at the bottom of the stairs, head busted up and bl...

>> reporter: but by all accounts, jermeir stroud loved denita dearly. it didn't make sense that he would kill the woman to whom he had just proposed. they were planning a big wedding. now after speaking with detectives, jermeir headed back home to greensboro, his life changed forever. and then, two hours after the murder, detectives got a lead. >> durham 911, where is your emergency? >> at campus crossings apartments. >> reporter: they discovered a second 911 call that had come in around the time denita was killed. >> i'm hearing gunshots coming from somewhere around here. >> reporter: the cal...

Same complex. >> durham 911, where is your emergency? >> i think this girl just fell down the stairs.ge she's at the bottom of the t stairs, head busted up and blood everywhere. >> okay, is she responding to you at all?er >> she's not even moving. do you want me to get her id out of her pocket? >> if you can. >> her name is denita monique smith.ca >> okay. >> denita! she ain't moving, man. >> reporter: denita seemed to have perhaps lost her balance and fallen down the stairs. police and paramedics rushed to the complex. the college was quickly notified, as was denita's family.eg >> "miss smith...

Night shift the day before. >> reporter: so he was off duty? >> he was off duty. it's not unbelievable. it just makes it harder to rule him out. >> reporter: so there's no proof he was anywhere. >> except for the fact that his phone was at his house on his nightstand plugged in. >> reporter: but by all accounts, jermeir stroud loved denita dearly. it didn't make sense that he would kill the woman to whom he had just proposed. they were planning a big wedding. now after speaking with detectives, jermeir headed back home to greensboro, his life changed forever. and then two hours after the murde...

>> except for the fact that his phone was at his house on his nightstand plugged in. >> reporter: but by all accounts, jermeir stroud loved denita dearly. it didn't make sense that he would kill the woman to whom he had just proposed. they were planning a big wedding. now after speaking with detectives, jermeir headed back home to greensboro, his life changed forever. and then, two hours after the murder, detectives got a lead. >> durham 911, where is your emergency? >> at campus crossings apartments. >> reporter: they discovered a second 911 call that had come in around the time denita was ki...