4 dead, 17 wounded in Birmingham mass shooting, Alabama police say
Four people were killed and 17 more were injured in a shooting in Birmingham, Alabama, police said Sunday. Some of the individuals wounded suffered “life-threatening injures,” Birmingham Police Officer Truman Fitzgerald said at a news conference, hours after the incident that occurred in what he called one of the city’s “most popular entertainment districts.”
Police said they believe multiple suspects fired at a large group of people standing outside near Magnolia Avenue in the Five Points South area. The shooting happened just after 11 p.m. CST.
Two men and one woman were pronounced dead at the scene by Birmingham Fire and Rescue. Police officers found them lying unresponsive on a sidewalk when they arrived. Each had multiple gunshot wounds.
They were identified Sunday night as Anitra Holloman, 21, Tahj Booker, 27, and Carlos McCain, 27.
A fourth gunshot victim, an adult man, was pronounced dead by staff at University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital.
Four of the wounded victims were in critical condition, police said. UAB Hospital received 12 victims, including one of the people who were killed, according to the Birmingham Police Department.
Detectives believe the shooting wasn’t random. Police said in a statement that they think it “stemmed from an isolated incident where multiple victims were caught in the crossfire.” Police said one of the people who was killed is believed to be the shooting’s intended target.
No one was in custody Sunday evening, but Fitzgerald told reporters earlier that police “will do everything we possibly can to make sure we uncover, identify and hunt down whoever is responsible for preying on our people this morning.”
Police said more than 100 shell casings were recovered and they believe the guns were equipped with illegal switches that turned them into a fully automatic weapons.
“Right now my mind is on the families who are experiencing a sudden, giant void in their lives. The innocent people currently under medical care fighting for their lives. The children who are experiencing loss and grief far, far too soon,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said Sunday. “I hope the perpetrators of this crime know how deep this trauma goes. There are families and children in immeasurable pain. There’s an entire community in mourning. Those are the consequences of your actions.”
Woodfin in an earlier statement said, “Glock switches are the number one public safety issue in our city and state.”
“Though illegal under federal law, there is no state law that makes glock switches illegal,” Woodfin said. “Every Mayor, Police Chief, Sheriff, and District Attorney I know wants glock switches outlawed. Converting a semi-automatic weapon into a fully automatic weapon that discharges all bullets within seconds doesn’t belong on our domestic streets.”
Police said they were investigating alongside the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They have asked anyone with information to contact the homicide division at the Birmingham Police Department or report tips anonymously to Crime Stoppers. The latter may give up to $5,000 for tips, according to police.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham campus is located in the Five Points South area, which is a nightlife hub in the city where numerous restaurants, bars and live music venues draw large crowds, particularly on weekend nights.