2011 Birmingham homicides

This is a List of Birmingham homicides in 2011. 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.

63 homicides were reported in the city in 2011. Based on the 2010 census count of 212,237 population, that represents 29.7 homicides per 100,000 population for the year. Birmingham had 63 homicides in 2010, 72 in 2009, 90 in 2008, and a record of 141 in 1992.

Birmingham averaged 5.25 homicides per month, or one every 5.8 days. There were 5 incidents in January, 2 in February, 9 in March, 8 in April, 8 in May. 4 in June, 7 in July, 2 in August, 7 in September, 4 in October, 4 in November and 3 in December. The longest stretch without a homicide was the 32 days between November 12 and December 14. Six deaths were reported on Sundays, 7 on Mondays, 11 on Tuesdays, 14 on Wednesdays, 7 on Thursdays. 5 on Fridays and 11 on Saturdays.

Of the 63 reported homicides, suspects have been identified in 42 cases, apprehended in 38, charged in 32 and convicted in 4, including 1 plea to the reduced charge of manslaughter. In one case, the suspect committed suicide. Another was shot to death after pleading guilty. Charges were dismissed in at least one other case.

Two deaths were the result of police shootings and two resulted from being struck by a police car (one a suspect, another a pedestrian who walked into the road). Two fatal assaults were ruled justifiable and not prosecuted. One remains unclassified. In another case, the District Attorney declined to prosecute on the basis of a previous acquittal for assault. Six others, one a domestic shooting, one an infanticide by neglect, one a vehicular accident involving a DUI, two from a fatal crash where the driver was faulted, and the other the unintended consequence of a shoving match, were charged as manslaughter. The police department acknowledges 50 murders and 5 manslaughters. Of those 55 cases, 39 were cleared and 16 remained unsolved at year's end, crediting detectives with a 70% clearance rate.

43 of the reported homicides were shootings, 5 were stabbings, 7 from vehicle collisions, 2 resulted from beatings, 1 from being shoved off a ledge, 2 from abuse inflicted on children, and 1 from a seizure brought on by an earlier shooting. 23 incidents took place on the streets, 2 in parking lots, 1 at a public park, 1 in a vacant lot, 8 at apartment complexes, 5 at businesses, 1 at a motel, and 19 at private residences. 1 incident was the result of an apparent robbery, 1 from a drug deal dispute, 2 from burglary attempts, 2 from dice games, 1 the result of an argument over a traffic accident, and 11 from domestic disputes. 53 victims were male and 9 were female.

Listing by date

1. January 12: Donald Addison Durr, Jr, 49, was found injured and suffering from exposure in a vacant lot off Dugan Avenue, where Nelson Avenue becomes Hixon Street in the North Pratt neighborhood (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. James Otis Holmes, Jr and J'Andre Cockrell, suspected in another assault and robbery nearby, were charged with the murder. Holmes pleaded guilty to murder, but was found shot to death in an Ensley alley before he was sentenced. Cockrell pleaded guilty to manslaughter before his April 2013 trial and was given a 20-split-5 sentence by Judge Virginia Vinson(report)
2. January 13: Fred Battle, 35, was found dead in a motel in Birmingham. The cause of death was ruled a homicide because he had suffered chronic seizures since being shot in the head in 2006. His girlfriend was charged with assault in the shooting, but acquitted at trial. The District Attorney declined to further prosecute. (report)
3. January 18: Nina Gardner, 30, was found shot to death at her home at 228 South Park Road in the Germania Park neighborhood (map). Terrance Edwards, the victim's boyfriend, was taken into custody at the scene and charged with murder. (report)
4. January 22: Cedric Ramsey, 43, was found shot to death on a walkway at Canterbury Gardens Apartments, 1033 17th Street Southwest in the West End Manor neighborhood (map). Willie Watts and Abe Montrez Burns were arrested and charged with murder. Investigators say the two were shooting at each other and that Ramsey was an innocent bystander, caught in their crossfire. Burns pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to three years probation. He violated probation by committing aggravated assault during a robbery in October 2012 and was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison. (report)
5. January 28: Ashton Stringer-Jones, 7 months, died from blunt force trauma to the head. His mother had left him in the care of a babysitter, a long-time friend, in order to attend classes at Miles College on January 26. When she came to pick him up, he was unconscious and bruised. He was taken to Children's Hopsital, but did not recover. The Jefferson County Coroner's Office determined that the cause of death was homicide, but charges have not yet been filed. (report)
6. February 9: Wardell Eugene Moss, 21, was found shot on the 7700 block of 1st Avenue South near Oporto Madrid Boulevard in South East Lake (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. Devin DeJarnett was arrested on February 15 and charged with murder. Witnesses said the two were arguing over an iPod. (report)
7. February 9: Michael Brown, 26, was shot by his father during a domestic dispute at 1341 18th Way Southwest in West End Manor (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. His father, Curtis Brown, was charged with murder. (report)
8. March 5: Charles Jerome Gamble, 43, was found shot to death inside a house on the 600 block of 5th Place Pratt in Central Pratt (map). No arrest. (report)
9. March 10: John Rosebud, 32, was stabbed in the chest during an argument in the bathroom of a boarding house on the 4300 block of 10th Avenue in Wylam (map). Michael Burts was charged with murder. (report)
10. March 13: Lois MacMahon, 78, was found shot to death at her home at 3401 Altamont Road in Redmont Park (map). Her husband, William MacMahon III, 83, apparently shot her and then shot and killed himself. (report)
11. March 14: Dickey Holley, 53, was found shot to death in a unit at the Cliffview Apartments at 3401 Cliff Road in Highland Park (map). Eric Scott Thomas was arrested and charged with murder. He was convicted in 2012 and sentenced to 25 years in prison. (report)
12. March 16: Kerry Connell, 18, was shot in his SUV following an altercation in the parking lot of the C C Food Store at 36 South Park Road in the Central Park neighborhood (map). A suspect turned himself in to police, but further investigation indicated that the shooting was justified and he was released without charges filed. (report)
13. March 19: Lavar Moore, 21, was found dead from a gunshot wound next to his residence at 5305 Avenue I in Ensley. No arrest (report)
14. March 21: Franklin Little, 36, was gunned down by an assault rifle across from his house on the 1500 block of Fulton Avenue Southwest in Arlington-West End (map). His mother was wounded in the attack. Three suspects who had been inside a black Crown Victoria fled on foot. No arrests. (report)
15. March 23: Sedrick Atkins, 28, was gunned down outside a unit in the Tom Brown Village public housing community on the 500 block of Messer Airport Highway in North Avondale (map). Jerome Reed was arrested and charged with murder. (report)
16. March 25: Michael Earl Alexander, 32, was killed when his motorcycle collided with a car that had turned in front of him on the 600 block of Bankhead Highway. Donald Justin Nixon, the driver of the car, was found to have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time of the incident and was subsequently charged with manslaughter. (report)
17. April 5: Tony Neely (also known as Tony Turner), 26, was found shot to death in the parking lot of the Montevallo Gardens Apartments at 329 3rd Avenue Southwest in North Titusville (map). Derrick Hubbard turned himself in to police shortly afterward. Quinton James was arrested in May 2011. Both were charged with murder. (report)
18. April 7: Willie Burch, 17, was shot in the chest on March 26 at 2 41st Street in North Avondale (map). He died later at UAB Hospital. No arrest (report)
19. April 11: Joseph Smith, 23, was stabbed during a robbery, and then killed when he was run over by the driver of an SUV on the 500 block of 50th Street South in Crestwood North (map). Forensic evidence led police to Jerry Collins, who has been charged with capital murder. (report)
20. April 13: Debra Hamler Peoples, 58, was killed when a Jeep, which had been seen speeding and driving erratically, changed lanes on I-459 South near the U. S. Highway 280 exit and struck her Honda CRV. Ronald Jacob was convicted on November 29, 2012 of reckless murder and sentenced to 18 years in prison. (report)
21. April 15: John White, 30, was shot and killed during a struggle with Birmingham Police responding to a domestic disturbance call at 1213 4th Avenue West in Bush Hills (map). The department's Internal Affairs Division and the Alabama Bureau of Investigation are reviewing the incident. (report)
22. April 24: Noah Reeves, 1, was found dead in a bathtub at his home at 1365 Paragon Parkway in Huffman. His mother, Joanna McCay, was found to have been under the influence of narcotics. She was charged in December with reckless manslaughter. (report)
23. April 26: Nathaniel Harris, Jr, 30, was shot to death following a dice game at a home on the 1200 block of 32nd Street North. The shooter, Willie Matthews, was taken into custody at the scene and charged with murder. (report)
24. April 27: Sandy Leon Lee, Jr, 18, was shot in a car on Freda Jane Lane in Killough Springs. A suspect was arrested, but has not yet been charged. (report)
25. May 4: Douglas Wayne Coker, 46, was found shot to death on the 10 block of 4th Court North in Smithfield (map). Joseph Haynes was arrested and charged with murder. (report)
26. May 4: Gerronda Hill, 30, was fatally attacked by a knife-wielding ex-boyfriend as she entered her home at 2125 47th Street Ensley in the Central Park neighborhood (map), with her two children, ages 10 and 13. She and the children fled to her car, where she died from her wounds. Gregory Smith, who had been previously jailed for stalking her, was charged with capital murder. (report)
27. May 5: Demetrius Pope, 30, was shot outside the DaVita dialysis center at 1917 32nd Avenue North in North Birmingham (map) and later died at UAB Hospital. Deondre Johnson, who allegedly shot him in an argument over a beer, turned himself in to police and was charged with capital murder. He testified that he shot in self-defense and was found not guilty at trial in October 2012. (report)
28. May 7: Cornelius Ellison, 53, was shot to death at the intersection of 6th Place and Avenue T in Central Pratt (map). James Melvin Peebles was arrested and charged with murder. (report)
29. May 10: Winston Dewayne Marsh, 29, died at Baptist Princeton Medical Center a day after being shot in the leg in Southwest Birmingham. After being shot, Marsh, a suspected drug dealer, made his way to the Lomb Avenue Shell, where another group robbed him of cash. No arrests. (report)
30. May 18: Levi Frazier, 22, died at UAB Hospital from a stab wound suffered during a fight at L. R. Hall Auditorium in Fountain Heights on May 15 (map). Two others were injured. Carlos Ivy was charged with murder and attempted murder, and Roderick Ivy with attempted murder in the incident. (report)
31. May 23: John Paul Thomas, 50, was shot to death at 6021 Woodward Avenue in Roosevelt City (map). No arrest. (report)
32. May 24: Corey Dewayne Dawson, 31, was found outside his car, which had struck a tree at Goldwire Street and 1st Street Southwest near Loveman Village in North Titusville (map). He was taken to UAB Hospital where it was discovered that he had been shot before the accident. No arrest. (report)
33. June 5: Classheka Norman, 31, was found dead in her burning home at 820 4th Court West in Bush Hills (map). Evidence at the scene led investigators to consider her death a homicide. Her gray Chevrolet HHR was recovered at the South Park Gardens Apartments, 2½ miles away. Justin Stinson, Brandon Hill and Jonathan Weston were arrested and charged with capital murder. (report)
34. June 24: Ronald Oscar Shoemaker, 35, was found beaten and stabbed to death at 913 24th Street South in the Southtown housing project, apparently the result of an argument over a drug deal. Robert Pierce, Jr, Julius Sanders, and Renaedo Holloman and Anthony Samuel were arrested and charged with murder. (report)
35. June 24: Patrick Dewayne Peoples, 22, was shot to death at the Alemeda Apartments on Alemeda Court in Southwest Birmingham. Brandon Edwards, who had been involved in an argument with Peoples the previous day, was arrested and charged with capital murder. The charge was dropped after investigators determined he had acted in self defense. (report)
36. June 27: An unnamed male was found in a burning vacant apartment building at 933 8th Avenue West in Bush Hills. No arrest. (report)
37. July 6: Andre Nathaniel Lewis, 18, was found beaten and shot to death at Star Truck Parts at 2616 20th Street North in North Birmingham. He was an employee of the business. No arrest. (report)
38. July 12: Jeremy Cutts, 24, was found shot to death on the 2100 block of Avenue Z. A person of interest was brought in for questioning, but no charges have been filed. (report)
39. July 12: Henry Lee Williams, 39, was shot by a Birmingham Police Officer during a foot chase through the parking lot of the Clayton Court Apartments on the 700 block of 1st Street South in Titusville. The Alabama Bureau of Investigation and the department's bureau of internal affairs are investigating. (report)
40. July 14: Marcus Evans, 21, was shot to death inside a home at 4740 Avenue R in Ensley. Danny Harvey was arrested and charged with murder. (report)
41. July 24: James Portis, 20, was shot to death near Avenue K and 21st Street in Ensley. A second man was also shot, but his injuries were not life threatening. Portis was a bystander caught in crossfire from a gun battle between Jeremy Ware, a worker for the Birmingham Department of Public Works, and Kevin Long and Brandon Nation. Ware was arrested in September and charged with murder and attempted murder. His charges were dismissed in February 2013. (report)
42. July 25: James Randall McGee, 44, died after being pushed off a 5-foot loading dock on 14th Street North between Morris Avenue and 1st Avenue North. A fellow transient, Randy Kukla, was arrested and charged with manslaughter. (report)
43. July 26: Demetrius Jones, 24, was shot twice in the head during a gun battle which erupted in West End on July 21. Jones and his brother were assaulted at an apartment complex on the 1100 block of Cotton Avenue. Another male was injured shortly afterward in front of a house on McMillon Avenue. No charges have yet been filed. (report)
44. August 7: Antonio Demr Porter, 28, was shot to death at 3525 Hemlock Avenue in Southwest Birmingham, victim of a deadly fight resulting from a dice game. Jared Calhoun turned himself in to police on August 8 and was charged with murder. (report)
45. August 31: Kenneth Dale Abrams, Jr, 24, was shot on the 10th block of 9th Alley West in College Hills. He died later at UAB Hospital. Eric Fisher was arrested and charged with murder. He was convicted on the lesser charge of provocation manslaughter and sentenced to 20 years in prison. (report)
46. September 3: Keothus Carlisle, Jr, 63, was killed on I-20/59 North near Arkadelphia Road when a Chevrolet Tahoe landed on his Ford Escort after the driver, Willie Turner, lost control and crossed the median while airborne. Turner was faulted for the incident and subsequently charged with manslaughter. (report)
47. September 3: Cynthia Foster Womack, 58, was killed on I-20/59 North near Arkadelphia Road when a Chevrolet Tahoe landed on her brother's Ford Escort after the driver, Willie Turner, lost control and crossed the median while airborne. Turner was faulted for the incident and subsequently charged with manslaughter. (report)
48. September 5: Curtis L. Harrison, 16, was shot to death at Smithfield Estates Park on the 1700 block of Huntingdon Drive in Smithfield Estates. Kevin Clark was arrested in Midfield and charged with murder. (report)
49. September 18: Raphael Sandoval, 18, was shot to death behind a vacant house at 1221 Gulfport Street in Wylam. (report)
50. September 20: Darius Frazier, 38, was shot to death at the intersection of 1st Avenue North and 52nd Street in Woodlawn. No arrest. (report)
51. September 20: John Inusa Dantata, 34, was found dead in his 2009 Kia Rio near the 7600 block of 3rd Avenue South in East Lake. Police initially responded to a ShotSpotter report of gunfire a block east of where Dantata was found. Investigators discovered he had been lured to the scene for the purpose of robbery via a phone sex line. Joare Tavaris Allen, Anthony Jackson, and Alexis Blocker were each charged with 1st degree robbery and capital murder (report)
52. September 30: Tommie Winborn, 23, was stabbed to death following a fight with his brother, Thomas, at 4418 9th Avenue North in Kingston. The suspect turned himself in to police and was charged with murder. (report)
53. October 8: Luvly Vonshea Cooper, 30, was found dead in a burned-out garage behind a Tuscaloosa Avenue house. No arrest. (report)
54. October 22: Kenneth James, 49, was found shot to death on the 2900 block of Avenue Z in Ensley. No arrest. (report)
55. October 22: An unnamed male was shot to death after wounding a man who had tried to break up an altercation resulting from a traffic accident on the 1800 block of 15th Avenue North. The shooting was referred to the District Attorney to determine if charges would be filed. (report)
56. October 31: Dewayne Crawford, 33, was found in the parking lot of an apartment complex near Legion Field. Investigators believe he was killed elsewhere and his body dumped near his home. No arrest. (report)
57. November 1: Demetrice Davis, 33, was found shot to death in a car on the 300 block of 3rd Avenue Southwest. No arrest. (report)
58. November 1: Malehia Pruitt, 18, was shot to death on the 1200 block of Rose Lynn Lane in Huffman. Her brother, Jarvis Pruitt, was charged with manslaughter. (report)
59. November 1: Derrick Montreals Peoples, 31, was shot to death during a gunfight at an apartment building on the 1100 block of 14th Street North. Carlos Mabry, previously convicted for manslaughter in the 2005 death of Ludie Thomas was arrested and charged with murder. (report)
60. November 12: Ronald Anderson, 34, was struck and killed by a Hueytown Police vehicle while he fled down an alley behind the 2700 block of Pike Road in Ensley. His department found the officer not to be at fault in the death, which is being investigated by Birmingham police as well. (report)
61. December 14: Michael Milane Hardy, 56. walked in front of a patrol car on 6th Avenue South near Beta Street and was struck and killed. His estate filed a wrongful death suit against the city in 2012. (report)
62. December 15: Michael Reed, 56, was found shot to death on a sidewalk on the 6700 block of Kimberly Avenue in Gate City. Charles Braxton was arrested and charged with capital murder. (report)
63. December 21: Barbara Freeman, 51, was shot to death at 1220 9th Court North. Katrina Porter, Kevin Porter and Alexander Carter were arrested and charged in connection with her death. (report)

References

• Robinson, Carol (July 3, 2011) "Birmingham, Alabama homicides on rise after quiet 2010." Birmingham News
• Gray, Jeremy (January 1, 2012) "Jefferson County police need help in solving 23 killings." Birmingham News

External links

• Slayings in the Birmingham area, 2011, al.com map on maps.google.com

See also

• List of homicides in 2011
• Birmingham homicides by year
• Crime in Birmingham