4 dead, 17 injured in Birmingham shooting, Alabama police say

Four people were killed and 17 others injured in a shooting in Birmingham, Alabama, police said Sunday. Some of those injured suffered “life-threatening injuries,” Birmingham police officer Truman Fitzgerald said at a news conference hours after the shooting, which occurred in what he called one of the city’s “most popular entertainment districts.”

Police said they believe multiple suspects fired shots at a large group of people who were outside near Magnolia Avenue in the Five Points South neighborhood. The shooting happened shortly after 11 p.m. Central Time.

Two men and a woman were pronounced dead at the scene by Birmingham Fire Department. When officers arrived, they found them unconscious on a sidewalk. Each had multiple gunshot wounds.

They were identified Sunday night as Anitra Holloman, 21, Tahj Booker, 27, and Carlos McCain, 27.

A fourth shooting victim, an adult male, was pronounced dead by staff at the University of Alabama Hospital in Birmingham.

Four of the injured are in critical condition, police said. UAB Hospital received 12 victims, including one of the deceased, according to the Birmingham Police Department.

Investigators believe the shooting was not random. Police said in a statement that they believed it was an “isolated incident where multiple victims were caught in the crossfire.” Police said one of the people killed was likely the intended target of the shooting.

No one was in custody Sunday night, but Fitzgerald told reporters earlier that police “will do everything in our power to ensure that we uncover, identify and track down whoever is responsible for the attack on our people this morning.”

Police said more than 100 shell casings were recovered and they believe the guns were fitted with illegal switches that turned them into fully automatic weapons.

“At this time, I am thinking of the families who are experiencing a sudden and immense void in their lives. Of the innocent people currently in medical care who are fighting for their lives. Of the children who are experiencing loss and grief far too soon,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said Sunday. “I hope the perpetrators of this crime know how profound this trauma is. There are families and children in great pain. There is an entire community in mourning. These are the consequences of your actions.”

Woodfin said in an earlier statement: “Glock switches are the number one public safety issue in our city and state.”

“While it is illegal under federal law, there is no state law that makes Glock switchblades illegal,” Woodfin said. “Every mayor, police chief, sheriff and district attorney I know wants Glock switchblades banned. Converting a semi-automatic weapon to a fully automatic weapon that unloads every bullet in seconds has no place on our American streets.”

Police said they are investigating in conjunction with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They asked anyone with information to contact the Birmingham Police Department’s homicide division or report tips anonymously to Crime Stoppers. Police said Crime Stoppers can give up to $5,000 for information.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham campus is located in the Five Points South neighborhood, which is a nightlife center of the city where many restaurants, bars, and music venues draw large crowds, especially on weekend nights.