2009 Birmingham homicides

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Map of Birmingham homicides in 2009

This is a List of Birmingham homicides in 2009. It includes homicide cases occuring within the city limits during the calendar year. Note that a "homicide" refers to the cause of death as determined by a medical examiner, not to the commission of the crime of murder as charged by police and prosecutors.

72 homicides were reported in the city during 2009. Based on the 2008 census estimate of 228,196 population, that represents 32.0 homicides per 100,000 population for the year. Birmingham had 90 homicides in 2008 (of which 82 were reported to the FBI as murders), 93 in 2007 (86 reported as murder), and a record of 141 in 1992.

Birmingham averaged 6.0 homicides per month, or one every 5.1 days. There were 8 incidents in January, 4 in February, 5 in March, 7 in April, 9 in May, 3 in June, 8 in July, 3 in August, 5 in September, 5 in October, 10 in November and 5 in December. The longest stretch without a homicide was the 18 days between October 2 and 20. 6 homicides were reported on Sundays, 8 on Mondays, 16 on Tuesdays, 9 on Wednesdays, 9 on Thursdays, 11 on Fridays and 12 on Saturdays.

Of the 72 reported homicides, suspects have been identified in 51 cases, apprehended in 45, charged in 41 and convicted in 7 (5 on reduced charges). 1 suspect was found not guilty, 4 suspects killed themselves, and 2 deaths were ruled justifiable. On December 31, the Birmingham News reported that the killers remained free in only 19 of 71 slayings.

At least 54 of the 72 reported homicides were shootings, 4 vehicular collisions, 3 stabbings, 3 beating deaths, and 3 cases of child neglect or abuse. At least 10 resulted from the escalation of previous altercations, 1 was due to an accident which occurred while fleeing from a crime, 3 occurred during robberies, 1 was an ambush by thieves on the run, 2 victims were apparently caught in crossfire, 2 deaths were ruled justified as self-defense, 4 were murder-suicides, 2 were the result of attempts to repossess a car, and the other cases had no reported motive. At least 32 deadly incidents occurred on the streets, 20 at private homes, 5 in yards or driveways, 2 in abandoned homes, 4 in parking lots, 5 in businesses and 1 in a park. 62 of the 72 victims were males.

Listing by date

  1. January 5: Cornelius Mosley, 34, found shot at 1st Avenue South and Goldwire Street (map). His brother was also injured in the mid-day shooting, which erupted when the Mosley's pulled up to a stop sign and were assaulted from a nearby porch. Ronald Martin, recently released from the hospital after being stabbed, was arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder. [1]
  2. January 8: Jason McLendon, 28, was shot after attempting to repossess a Cadillac on the 2000 block of 19th Court North with a partner (map). Reginald Jackson and his brother Jeremiah Jimerson, confronted the two and threatened them with a rifle, prompting them to leave without the car. As they left, Jackson fired a shot which struck McClendon in the back of the head. Jackson turned himself in to police and confessed, saying that he intended to fire in the air over the truck. He was charged with capital murder but convicted of the lesser charge of manslaughter. [2]
  3. January 11: Charles Bevelle, Jr, 33, a coal miner from Hueytown, called Birmingham police and reported that he was the victim of a hit-and-run accident on I-20/59 North near Avenue I Ensley at about 3:00 AM (map). When police arrived, they found him shot to death. Charlie Joe "Coyote" Wilson, who had been involved in a fight with Bevelle the previous night at Hell Lovers Motorcycle Club in Fairfield, turned himself in to authorities on January 16 and was charged with intentional murder. [3]
  4. January 13: Keith Shoemaker, 51, was struck by a car containing three burglary suspects being chased by Birmingham police on Parkway East at Shopping Center Drive (map). After the wreck, the suspects fled on foot and were captured. Cordarrious Davidson, Brandon Pauldin and Kenneth Baker have each been charged with murder as well as burglary. [4] (Note 1)
  5. January 13: The burned remains of Leroy Langlais, 41, of Missouri, Texas were found in a charred car that had been impounded from East Birmingham on December 23, 2008. He had been shot and placed in the trunk, then moved to the back seat before the car was set ablaze. Langlais, who flew into Birmingham and rented a car, was reported missing by his wife. (Note 2) [5]
  6. January 22: Sandy Doss, Jr, 29, was killed and another person injured in a shooting at 3556 43rd Avenue North (map). Investigators believe the incident to have been a drug-related robbery. Dion Williams was arrested and charged with capital murder and attempted murder. Another suspect was charged, but those charges were dismissed after further investigation. [6]
  7. January 26: Jasper Dozier, 50, was shot to death in front of his house at 624 2nd Street Southwest (map). Randy Taylor turned himself in to police and was charged with murder. [7]
  8. January 31: Carlos Garcia, 38, was found dead from gunshot wounds in a vehicle in the parking lot at 800 Gadsden Highway (map). Another man was found wounded in the vehicle. No arrest.
  9. February 7: Geraldo Gonzalez, 31, found shot to death at 5018 18th Court North (map). Julio Cesar Romero, with whom the victim had an ongoing dispute, was identified as a suspect and charged. He initially fled to Georgia, but later turned himself in to Birmingham police. [8]
  10. February 7: LeRico Beasley, 21, found shot to death on the 4100 block of Messer Airport Highway alley (map). No arrest. [9]
  11. February 13: Demarshell Taper, 34, was shot to death in Arthur Shores Park in Druid Hills (map). Witnesses say she was killed by a man who walked with her into the park, talked with her, then shot her four times and fled. Carey Lamar Lee was arrested and pleaded guilty to felony murder in November. He was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison. (report)
  12. February 25: LaKiyah Stenson, age 1, died from "sequelae of neglect" according to the determination of the coroner. Her mother, Tangela Harris, 25, was arrested and released without charge in March. Prosecutors will determine if they will file charges after the coroner's final ruling in May. [10]
  13. March 8: Edward Maurice "Mo" Howard, 41, was found with severe head trauma after a fight on the 5000 block of 9th Avenue North (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. LaQuinton Wright and Daryl Bailey were arrested and charged with capital murder. Otis Lipford was arrested two months later. A fourth suspect, Ricky Parker has been charged but remains at large. [11]
  14. March 15: Brennan Jackson, 39, was shot to death in the doorway of his home on the 1400 block of Avenue I Ensley (map). Melvin Houston has been arrested and charged with murder. [12]
  15. March 18: George Cook, Jr, 34, was shot to death while sitting in his car on the 500 block of 17th Street Southwest (map). A silver Chevorlet was identified by a witness as the shooters' vehicle. No arrest. [13]
  16. March 21: Melvin Howard, 49, found shot to death in the alley behind the 700 block of Albany Street in Wylam (map). Michael Benson was arrested September 1 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and charged with murder. [14]
  17. March 22: Stanley Eatmon, 20, found shot to death on the 5300 block of Gordon Avenue Southwest (map). Brothers Vincent and Justin Johnson, who accompanied Eatmon in the armed invasion of a building, were charged in connection with his death. [15]
  18. April 2: Shalanda Ford, 36. was found dead in an abandoned home on the 1300 block of Court R in Ensley (map). No arrest. [16]
  19. April 7: Aaron C. Freeman, 26, was killed in a shootout on the 1600 block of 21st Place North in Druid Hills (map). A suspect was injured in the shootout and was taken to UAB Hospital. Freeman had served 5 years for the 2001 murder of Heman Daniels III. [17]
  20. April 10: Leroy "Little Fred" Yarbrough, 20, was shot and killed on the 300 block of 4th Terrace North in Smithfield (map). Korde Lorodius Turner was arrested at his mother's apartment in February 2011. He was found not guilty at trial in Tommy Nail's court after giving testimony that he fired only after Yarbrough reached for a gun. Turner was found shot to death along with two other men in May 2015. (report)
  21. April 15: John Orrin Morrison, 65, was found shot to death on a sidewalk on the 500 block of 82nd Street South in East Lake (map). Ralphael Hubbard and an unnamed juvenile suspect were arrested and charged with capital murder. (report)
  22. April 23: Unnamed male found in a ditch along I-20/59 North near Arkadelphia Road (map). Investigators suspect the body may have been there for weeks. Jose Reyes, 30, was arrested and charged with capital murder. [18]
  23. April 28: Romell Kiwan Wright, 17, was shot multiple times in the 200 block of Munger Avenue in Southwest Birmingham (map). The death was ruled justified as Wright was attempting to commit an armed robbery when he was shot by his intended victim. No charges were filed. [19] (Note 3)
  24. May 3: Lonnie M. Vaughn, 44, found dead from multiple gunshot wounds in a wooded area near Westchester Drive and 1st Street Northwest (map). Martez Seay and Kandi Hawkins have been charged with murder. Seay was arrested quickly while Hawkins was taken into custody after she was found shot in the 2700 block of 40th Avenue North on June 15. [20]
  25. May 5: Barbara Hill, 46, found dead from gunshot wounds after a reported domestic assault on the 400 block of West Smithfield Terrace (map). Her husband, Larry Hill, was also found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. [21]
  26. May 6: Cory Deonta Cox, 21, was killed trying to mediate in a gunfight between two brothers in a courtyard on the 2300 block of 9th Avenue South in the South Town housing community where they were neighbors (map). One brother was wounded and taken to UAB Hospital. The other fled. [22]
  27. May 12: Darryl Palmore, 17, was found shot to death in the 4700 block of 6th Avenue in Wylam (map). Bieniemy Luther was arrested and charged with murder. [23]
  28. May 13: Linda "Toochie" Chapman, 37, was found dead in a vacant house on the 400 block of Theta Avenue in North Titusville (map). She had no known address, but often visited her six children being raised by her mother. She had not been seen by family members since February. No arrest. [24]
  29. May 16: Jeremy Conner, 28, killed in a shootout on 8th Avenue North that left another man injured. Marius Copes was arrested and charged with capital murder and attempted murder. He claimed that the victims were attempting to rob him. [25]
  30. May 22: Frank Wright, 57, of Schererville, Indiana was found shot to death in a stall of a car wash on the 5000 block of Messer Airport Highway (map). His car was later found partially burned on the 4100 block of 5th Avenue South. Anthony Lane was convicted of capital murder in April 2011 and sentenced to death. The Alabama State Supreme Court ordered in 2018 that he be re-sentenced without consideration of the death penalty. (report)
  31. May 23: Earnest Lee Hamilton, 22, was shot while sitting on the porch at 7530 65th Courtway South in the Marks Village housing community (map). Terrance Covington has been arrested and charged with intentional murder. A second suspect reported by witnesses is also sought. [26]
  32. May 28: David Dewayne Martin, 44, was killed and two other people were wounded at a shooting at the Tri Country Treatment Center at 1101 East Park Drive in Roebuck. The suspect, Darol Wayne Odell, was pursued from the scene and shot himself at the wheel of his car near Pine Hill Road and Tarrant Road north of Tarrant. The shooting is believed to have begun as a domestic dispute between Odell and a woman at the clinic who was not injured in the incident. [27]
  33. June 10: DeRichard Mines, 22, died after being injured in a shootout at an apartment complex on the 2500 block of 21st Street Ensley (map). The fight apparently initiated from a domestic dispute. [28]
  34. June 19: Marco Tyler, 28, was shot through the door of his home at 312 Memphis Street in Wylam (map). Michael Tolbert was arrested on June 23 and charged with capital murder. [29]
  35. June 20: Kirwin King, 22, an engineering student at the University of Alabama, was shot on the 2500 block of Tempest Drive in Powderly after following a car there (map). He was attempting to retrieve items stolen from his sister when he was ambushed. Someone drove him to Princeton Baptist Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on arrival. No arrest. [30]
  36. July 1: Janiyah Nicole Hale, 1, was found dead in her grandmother's home on the 300 block of 3rd Avenue Southwest (map). The death was ruled a homicide from blunt force trauma. Her father, Cory Rice, wanted already for failing to register as a sex offender for the statutory rape that produced the child, was taken into custody and later charged with capital murder. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to life without parole. (report)
  37. July 1: Mewburn Humphrey, 35, was shot to death inside his home on the 800 block of Center Way Southwest (map). Mohammad Ansari was named as a suspect, but was himself found shot in the head in a parking lot on the 4400 block of 5th Avenue South on July 20. [31]
  38. July 8: Teresa Wright, 40, was found shot to death in an apparent murder suicide at 221 22nd Street Southwest (map). Talmadge Owens was also found dead at the scene from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. [32]
  39. July 11: Cleve Clements, 28, was found stabbed in his bedroom at 2 4th Court North following a report of a domestic disturbance (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. Latonya Conner was found to have acted in self defense and no charges were filed. [33]
  40. July 23: Ron-Drequez Cortez White, 20, was struck by a car on the 1100 block of Center Point Parkway (map). The driver left the scene of the collision. Tony Ferrell was found during a canvas of the area and charged with manslaughter. [34]
  41. July 23: Rosetia Smith, 23, was shot in the head in her car with her three children and another adult in a parking lot near the intersection of Trax Drive and 41st Avenue North in Sayreton (map). The other adult drove her to UAB Hospital where she was pronounced dead. Laquintta Turk was with a group of friends of Lasha Catlin's. They were confronted by Smith, a friend of Tiffany Allen, whose sister had borne a child fathered by Catlin's ex-boyfriend, triggering a quarrel. Turk shot her when the confrontation got violent. She was arrested and charged with capital murder, but convicted on the lesser charge of reckless murder in August 2010 and sentenced to 18 years. (report)
  42. July 25: Tiffany Smith, 27, was shot in the head outside the home of Charlie Coleman at 3925 Howard Avenue in Wenonah following a domestic argument with him that began at her home in Forestdale (map). Coleman, believed to have been the shooter, returned to the scene and shot himself. [35]
  43. July 27: Harold Brown, 20, was killed after Brandon Mason found him and three others attempting to jump start his stolen 1985 Buick Regal at the corner of 54th Street and Park Avenue Southwest (map). Mason left and returned with a gun and opened fire. Another man was injured in the shooting. Mason was charged with capital murder. Montague Wilson and Demetrius Moore were charged with auto theft. [36]
  44. August 3: Brandon McGuire, 23, was shot while standing in a driveway on the 5900 block of Jesse Owens Avenue. No arrest. Another fatal shooting the same night in Brighton is believed to have been a retaliation for McGuire's murder. McGuire's son, Desmon Antwuan McGuire, was shot to death in 2021. [37]
  45. August 14: Johnathan Lockett, 18, a student at Lawson State Community College, was found shot to death in his car on the 2900 block of 28th Way Southwest. No arrest.
  46. August 30: Kelvin Felder, 21, was stabbed to death at Club Zen on Morris Avenue. Harold Williams, Jr of Bessemer left the scene and later turned himself in to police and was charged with murder. He was convicted of intentional murder on September 16, 2010. (report)
  47. September 1: Samuel Craig, 22, was shot during an argument at a residence on the 900 block of 14th Street Southwest across from Woodward Park. Samuel Hendricks was arrested and charged with murder. [38]
  48. September 11: Clarence Anthony Bandy, 49, was found dead from head trauma in a shed he occupied behind his family's home at 1812 13th Way Southwest. No arrest. [39]
  49. September 19: Elbert Ringo, 59, was killed by a rifle shot to the head during an argument with his wheelchair-bound roommate at their home at 7624 5th Avenue North. James Davis was arrested and charged with murder. [40]
  50. September 22: Christopher Woods, 31, was one of two people shot in a gunfight over a drug deal at 7th Street and Avenue W in Tuxedo Heights. Christopher Norris was charged with capital murder. [41]
  51. September 22: Josie Grimmett, 33, was shot during an argument at 600 Princeton Avenue Southwest. Marcus Massey has been arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder. [42]
  52. October 2: Walter Cook, 60, was stabbed to death in a domestic assault. His wife, Betty Cook, was arrested and charged with murder. [43]
  53. October 20: Michael Turner, 26, was killed during a robbery and left in an abandoned apartment at 1017 Tuscaloosa Avenue Southwest near 10th Street Southwest. Cedric Sumpter was arrested and charged with capital murder. [44]
  54. October 23; Patrick Eldridge, 32, was killed by a rifle shot while working in his back yard on Annette Street. His 1994 Chevy Astro van was stolen. No arrest. [45]
  55. October 29: David Leon Williams, 47, was shot near the intersection of 25th Street and Avenue E in Ensley. He was found dead a block away shortly afterward. [46]
  56. October 30: Nathaniel Davis, 48, was killed in a gunfight during his birthday party at the Life Styles Detail Shop on the 800 block of 20th Street Ensley. His older brother, Marvin Davis, was injured in the incident and later charged with manslaughter. [47]
  57. November 2: Jacqueline Callen, 42, was found dead in an abandoned apartment on the 100 block of St Charles Avenue Southwest. No arrest. [48]
  58. November 3: Tiffany Edwards, 19, was shot following a fight on the 400 block of 1st Street West. She was taken to UAB Hospital where she later died. Natalya McArthur was arrested and charged with murder. [49]
  59. November 5: Darrell Deangelo Jackson, 45, was shot in the stomach during an argument over a cell phone in a parking lot at 331 3rd Avenue Southwest. Alan Albert turned himself in and was charged with murder. [50]
  60. November 9: Robert Tucker, 23, was found shot to death in the back yard of the home he shared with his mother at 4044 38th Avenue North in Inglenook. It appeared he had confronted a burglar. No arrest. (report)
  61. November 10: The August 29 death of Evan Guy K. Byrdsong, 4, at Children's Hospital was ruled a homicide by a "sequelae of abuse and neglect" on the part of his mother and stepfather. Marcus Smith and Quanisha Smith were arrested in December 2009 and charged with capital murder. The charges were reduced to manslaughter in a preliminary hearing in January 2011, but a Grand Jury indicted them both on capital murder charges in March 2011. Marcus Smith pleaded guilty to reckless manslaughter in April 2011 and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. (report)
  62. November 16: Ryan Thomas Glenn, 25, was found shot to death in a Nissan Maxima in a parking lot for apartments on the 7700 block of 4th Avenue South in East Lake. The shooting apparently resulted from an argument over a large bag of marijuana. Tavaris Allen and Daymon Maurice Bush were arrested and charged with capital murder. [51]
  63. November 17: Alvoida "Dale" Skeen, 29, was found dead outside a house at 1318 46th Place North in Kingston. Three suspects were charged in February 2010. Antonio Clark was arrested and one, Cordaryl Craig, turned himself in to police. [52]
  64. November 18: Derric Rush, 35, was killed in an automobile collision on I-20/59 near the Arkadelphia Road exit. Birmingham Police officer James Lenoir Kendrick, driver of the other car, was charged with murder after investigators determined that he had been driving under the influence of alcohol after leaving Club Volcano. He was convicted of the lesser charge of reckless manslaughter in March 2011 and later sentenced to serve 12 years in prison. In February 2013 a jury found Kendrick and the club responsible for Rush's wrongful death and awarded $40 million in damages. (report)
  65. November 20: Derek Rich, 21, a UAB student, was found shot to death in the passenger seat of a white Crown Victoria on the 400 block of Sunhill Road in Pinson Valley. He drove his roommate to the apartments to meet someone and was set upon by masked gunmen in a robbery attempt. No arrest. [53]
  66. November 27: Daniel Debray Brannon, 21, was mortally injured when his car was struck from behind at a red light at 1st Avenue North and 54th Street. He died the next day at UAB Hospital. The other driver, Curtes Lee Davis, was charged with murder. [54]
  67. December 14: Roderick Bowers, 34, was found shot to death at his home at 1304 Avenue H in Ensley. No arrest. [55]
  68. December 19: Steven Singleton, 21, was shot to death during a robbery in a business on the 2200 block of Bessemer Road. No arrest. [56]
  69. December 22: Anthony Everson, 30, was found shot to death along with an older man in an apartment at 4206 5th Avenue South across from Avondale Park. Sherman Shamburger was arrested and charged with both murders. [57]
  70. December 22: Robert Earl Littlepaige, 60, was found dead along with Everson in the apartment in Avondale.
  71. December 22: Kourtney Nichols, 21, was shot to death at his apartment in the 2300 building at Aspen Run Apartments in an apparent attempt to rob him of money and pharmaceuticals he was believed to have previously stolen. Joshua Deloach, Kourtney Collins, Michael Johnson and Derrick Young were taken into custody in June 2010 and charged with capital murder. Young is believed to have been the shooter. (report)
  72. December 24: RaShawn Kendall, 23, was one of three suspects attempting a robbery at R & S Fashion at 7712 2nd Avenue South in East Lake. He was killed in a shootout with the owners. Winford Saxton and Ricky Jay, Kendall's suspected accomplices, were arrested and charged with murder. (report)

Notes

  1. The death of Keith Shoemaker was ruled accidental by the coroner, but occured during the commission of a crime and resulted in murder charges. The Birmingham Police Department is not counting Shoemaker's death in its count, but the Birmingham News is.
  2. The death of Leroy Langlais occurred in December 2008, but was ruled a homicide by the coroner's office in 2009. Neither the Birmingham Police Department nor the Birmingham News are including Langlais' death in their 2009 counts.
  3. The Birmingham Police Department does not count homicides toward their total if they have been ruled justifiable by police or prosecutors.

Responses

The annual Martin Luther King, Jr Day gun buy-back sponsored by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference brought in 15 firearms at $50 per gun.

Police chief A. C. Roper led a series of prayer walks in the Graymont, East Birmingham and West End areas. During the walks Roper greeted residents and asked their help praying for God's help in ending crime.

An anti-youth violence event sponsored by the Parents Against Violence Foundation and the Birmingham Park and Recreation Board was held at the Central Park Recreation Center on May 30.

Another prayer walk was held at Southtown Court on July 4 with police officials and members of the Church of the Highlands.

On September 23 Southern Christian Leadership Conference president Calvin Woods, flanked by two of Josie Grimmett's sisters, called for ministers and community leaders to speak out more strongly against violence.

Another prayer walk was held in Wylam on October 17. The annual Survivors of Murdered Loved Ones luncheon was held on November 21. Birmingham Police Chief A. C. Roper and his wife Edith attended and shared stories of the murders of their own siblings.

The "Kevin Felder ordinance", passed by the Birmingham City Council in 2013, was named in memory of the victim of the August 30 stabbing outside Zen.

References

  • Garrison, Greg (November 21, 2009) "Birmingham police chief shares story of murdered brother with crime victims." 'The Birmingham News
  • Robinson, Carol (December 31, 2009) "Grieving kin seek justice in Birmingham's unsolved homicides." The Birmingham News
  • Gray, Jeremy (January 1, 2010) "City homicides drop third year in row." The Birmingham News

External links

See also

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