COLLEGE PARK, Md. — A judge sentenced Sean Urbanksi to life in prison Thursday for the stabbing death of U.S. Army Lt. Richard Collins III. Urbanksi killed Collins while he and three friends were waiting at a bus stop in May 2017.
Collins, a Black student, was on the University of Maryland’s Campus with friends celebrating his upcoming graduation from Bowie State University and recent commission into the Army. It was on the early morning of May 20 when UMD Campus Police said a white UMD student, named Sean Urbanski, stabbed Collins for not moving.
Urbanski was charged with first-degree murder and a hate crime after the fatal stabbing. A judge later dismissed hate crime charges, but he was found guilty of first-degree murder charges.
During Thursday’s sentencing, the topic of race was at the forefront of the conversation.
Through tears, Dawn Collins, Richard’s mother, told the virtual court Thursday she was struck with fear when she learned she was having a boy because he was going to be a Black man in America. She told the court her son’s greatest crime was saying no to a white man.
“He did not believe anyone was going to be a stranger to him. He was very inclusive that’s why it’s very disheartening to hear our son was murdered in this manner,” Dawn Collins said after the sentencing. “We strongly contend this is a hate crime. He was singled out, but he was a patriot.”
Collins was referred to as bright with a promising future of serving his country.
Last year a new hate crime law went into effect in Maryland that was named after Collins.
Prosecutors said Urbanski liked a Facebook group called "Alt-Reich: Nation" and saved at least six pictures of racist memes on his phone. The judge in the case said he didn’t think it was a coincidence Urbanksi stabbed the only Black man in the group.
Urbanski’s mother, Elizabeth, spoke to the court and apologized to the Collins family. She told them she would never be able to say enough or make up for what her son did.
Urbanksi’s attorney told the virtual court that Urbanksi was not filled with hate and not obsessed with race and that he was too drunk to remember the attack.
Sean Urbanski also addressed the court and apologized to the Collins family and said he had no memory of the events that unfolded that night. He told the family if he could switch places with their son he would in a heartbeat.
Although Urbanski has been sentenced to life in prison, parole is a possibility.
Jason Abbot with the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office said he will be eligible for parole in 15 years, but that doesn’t mean he will get it.
University of Maryland's president released a statement Thursday:
Dear faculty, staff and students:
It has been more than three and a half years since the life of First Lieutenant Richard W.Collins III was senselessly taken on our campus. As a community, we remain deeply affected by the tragic loss. An accomplished Bowie State University student, Lt. Collins was commissioned to serve in the United States Army before his death. Today, Sean Urbanski, a former UMD student, was sentenced to life in prison for the first-degree murder of Lt. Collins, a crime that many considered to be motivated by hate. The case led to changes in how hate-motivated crimes are prosecuted in the state of Maryland. On October 1, 2020, Maryland's hate crime law expanded to allow prosecution of hate crimes if the crimes were "motivated either in whole or in substantial part by" hate or bias, as opposed to just "sole" motivation, as previously required. The law is named after Lt. Richard Collins III.
Our hearts are with Richard and Dawn Collins and the entire Collins family on this day, and we are grateful that they continue to work closely with us through the recently launched Social Justice Alliance, a partnership between the University of Maryland and Bowie State University. On a personal note, I am deeply affected by the magnitude of this tragedy. I know many of you feel the same. I encourage you to engage in the work of the Social Justice Alliance and in other efforts to combat racial injustice.
We will carry forward the memory of Lt. Collins as we make plans for a physical memorial on campus to commemorate his life and memory. We are currently working with the Collins family on its location and design. At the appropriate time, we will communicate to our campus community about the memorial site.