Birmingham Police: Five Points South mass shooting may have been murder-for-hire; 4 dead, 17 injured
An unidentified man attempts to calm down a woman in the aftermath of a mass shooting in the 2000 block of Magnolia Avenue in Birmingham’s Five Points South neighborhood late Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. Birmingham Police said at least 4 people were killed and dozens were injured in the shooting.
A mass shooting in Birmingham’s Five Points South neighborhood late Saturday night left at least four people dead and 17 injured.
Birmingham Police Officer Truman Fitzgerald said police were called to the 2000 block of Magnolia Avenue South just after 11 p.m. for a shots fired call.
At the scene, multiple people pulled over in a car and fired with at least one automatic weapon at one person before getting back into the vehicle and fleeing the scene, Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond said in an update Sunday morning. More than 100 shell casings were collected at the scene, among other pieces of evidence, and bystanders were caught in the crossfire.
“To the victims and the victims’ families, our heartfelt condolences go out to them,” Thurmond said. “That’s 21 people whose lives were forever changed. That’s 21 families that were destroyed. Our hearts go out to them as we work through this, but this is going to take some time for us.”
Thurmond said the shooting was not random and may have stemmed from an alleged murder-for-hire against an individual in the Five Points South entertainment district at the time. No one is in custody, but police are asking for businesses and witnesses to report any information they have.
“The public is the eyes and ears of the city and the police department,” Thurmond said. “They know far more than we will ever know. They’ve got to share that information with us so we can act on it and remove those people from the streets of Birmingham.”
The targeted individual is among the four dead. At the scene, police found two men and a woman who were shot and unresponsive. They were later pronounced dead at the scene.
The fourth deceased victim, a man, was among eight people transported by Birmingham Fire and Rescue Services to the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital for gunshot wounds.
Other gunshot victims arrived at Ascension St. Vincent’s Hospital, Brookwood Baptist Medical Center and Princeton Baptist Medical Center on their own seeking treatment. Injuries for the other victims range from critical to non-life threatening.
City and police officials believe a switch — a small device that can convert a semi-automatic handgun into a fully automatic weapon — may have been used in the shooting.
Initial reports on social media said the shooting possibly took place at a nearby nightclub, but Fitzgerald said police were told all the victims were out in the open — either on the sidewalk or in the street.
“We were not told this happened in any businesses,” he said.
Birmingham’s homicide total for 2024 is at 122, including Saturday night’s four deaths, according to AL.com. It’s the third quadruple homicide this year, following a drive-by shooting in the Smithfield neighborhood on Feb. 16 and a drive-by shooting at an adult birthday party on July 13.
At Sunday’s update, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said everyone in the city owes it to the victims and their families to do everything they can to bring the shooters to justice. He also spoke to the larger issue of gun violence, calling it not just a problem in Birmingham, but an American problem.
“We find ourselves in 2024, where gun violence is at an epidemic level in our country, and unfortunately, the city of Birmingham finds itself at the tip of that spear,” Woodfin said. “Is it solvable? The answer is yes. Does it require everyone coming together? The answer is also yes.”
The Birmingham Police Department is working on its investigation with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. City and police officials ask any businesses in the area with surveillance cameras to contact police if they captured footage of the shooting. An evidence submission portal has been created, and witnesses are also encouraged to call Crimestoppers at 205-254-7777 with any information.
“There’s a certain element in this community who are too comfortable riding around with semiautomatic weapons, automatic weapons, convergence switches and everything else whose only intent… is to harm people, shoot people, kill people,” Woodfin said. “They don’t care if innocent people are around. We need the necessary tools… so I want to work with the state to solve this problem.”
The Gulf States Newsroom’s Stephan Bisaha, Orlando Flores Jr. and Drew Hawkins contributed to this report.
How Alabama Power kept bills up and opposition out to become one of the most powerful utilities in the country
In one of the poorest states in America, the local utility earns massive profits producing dirty energy with almost no pushback from state regulators.
No more Elmo? APT could cut ties with PBS
The board that oversees Alabama Public Television is considering disaffiliating from PBS, ending a 55-year relationship.
Nonprofit erases millions in medical debt across Gulf South, says it’s ‘Band-Aid’ for real issue
Undue Medical Debt has paid off more than $299 million in medical debts in Alabama. Now, the nonprofit warns that the issue could soon get worse.
Roy Wood Jr. on his father, his son and his new book
Actor, comedian and writer Roy Wood Jr. is out with a new book -- "The Man of Many Fathers: Life Lessons Disguised as a Memoir." He writes about his experience growing up in Birmingham, losing his dad as a teenager and all the lessons he learned from various father figures throughout his career.
Auburn fires coach Hugh Freeze following 12th loss in his last 15 SEC games
The 56-year-old Freeze failed to fix Auburn’s offensive issues in three years on the Plains, scoring 24 or fewer points in 17 of his 22 league games. He also ended up on the wrong end of too many close matchups, including twice this season thanks partly to questionable calls.
In a ‘disheartening’ era, the nation’s former top mining regulator speaks out
Joe Pizarchik, who led the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement from 2009 to 2017, says Alabama’s move in the wake of a fatal 2024 home explosion increases risks to residents living atop “gassy” coal mines.
