5 Points South shooting in Birmingham, Alabama leaves 4 dead, 18 wounded. Shooting deemed not random, but stemming from an isolated incident involving multiple gunmen leading to innocent bystanders along popular entertainment area being caught in the crossfire. No suspects or arrests as manhunt ensues.
And it continues…. Alabama authorities have told of 4 people killed and at least 18 others injured when ‘multiple shots’ erupted in a popular entertainment district of Birmingham, AL, Saturday night amid a mass shooting involving multiple gunmen following the eruption of an ‘argument.’
Birmingham Police stated ‘multiple people were shot with possibly multiple casualties,’ just after 11 p.m. near 20th Street and Magnolia Ave. in Five Points South, a popular nightlife section of the city.
The Five Points South area has numerous entertainment venues, restaurants and bars and often attracts large crowds on Saturday nights.
Drive by shooting or did gunmen walk up to victims caught up in cross-fire?
Initial reports suggested the victims were waiting to enter Hush, a hookah and cigar lounge, AL.com reported.
First responders discovered two adult males and an adult female ‘unresponsive on the sidewalk suffering from gunshot wounds’ and were pronounced dead at the scene, Birmingham Officer Truman Fitzgerald told reporters.
A fourth victim, who was transported to UAB Hospital, was pronounced dead.
‘We also began locating multiple additional gunshot victims in and around the area,’ he said.
Detectives were investigating whether the gunmen – who were still on the loose – walked up to the victims or drove by, Officer Truman Fitzgerald said.
🚨🇺🇸 BREAKING: MULTIPLE PEOPLE SHOT IN ALABAMA, POSSIBLE CASUALTIES
Birmingham Police have confirmed multiple victims in a shooting at Five Points South late Saturday night.
The incident, reported at 11:29 p.m., may involve several casualties.
Officers are on the scene, and… pic.twitter.com/eYjB7YTlyT
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) September 22, 2024
All victims shot out in the open by multiple gunmen
‘This group of shooters fired on these victims while they were out in the open,’ Fitzgerald said. ‘This was on a sidewalk or a city street.’
Birmingham Fire and Rescue transported eight victims to local hospitals as others were brought by private vehicles.
‘In these types of situations, when you lock into a number, that number typically changes, so we can for a fact say we have dozens of gunshot victims from this area.’
It is believed the shooting was not random and stemmed from an isolated incident where multiple victims were caught in the crossfire, Birmingham Police stated.
All the victims were shot ‘out in the open’ either on a sidewalk or in the street.
A total of 22 people were shot. Of the 18 surviving individuals who survived initial gunfire, their injuries ranged from non threatening to life-threatening, with four critically injured, WVTM13 reported.
‘These group of shooters fired upon their victims while they were out in the open’ Fitzgerald said.
‘We believe that multiple shooters fired multiple shots on a group of people,’ Fitzgerald continued.
No arrests have been made as police urged the public to relay information regarding the shooting.
Use of switches
Police re-affirmed their resolve to bring those responsible to account.
‘Rest assured we are gonna do everything we possibly can to make sure that we uncover, identify and hunt down who is ever responsible for this preying on our people this morning,’ Fitzgerald added.
Detectives were investigating whether the shooting was a drive-by or if the shooters were on foot, police said. Police also sought to confirm whether gunmen used switches, a small device that can turn a semi-automatic gun into a fully automatic weapon.
Alabama lawmakers have considered legislation banning switches like the one said to have been used in this shooting. Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, is once again sponsoring the legislation that makes anyone caught with a Glock switch on a pistol subject to a Class C felony, punishable by up to 10 years in state prison.
Saturday night’s shooting is the second mass shooting to rock Birmingham this year.
On July 13, four people were killed during a drive-by-shooting at an adult birthday party, leaving nine injured, according to AL.com.
‘These mass shootings have more to do with culture then they do criminality,’ Fitzgerald said. ‘Mayor Randall Woodfin said it best this weekend ‘we’re seeing far too many arguments being settled by bullets,’ and I think this speaks to exactly what our mayor recently said.’
Fitzgerald urged the public to provide any information they have about the shooting to police. Nearby businesses were urged to share surveillance video footage with police.
‘There’s no information that is too small,’ he said. ‘We know this area is saturated with cameras.’
400 mass shootings across the US to date in 2024
As of Sunday morning, no suspects had been identified or arrested.
Prior to Saturday night’s incident, there had been 118 homicides in Birmingham this year. The total as of now stands at 122.
There have been more than 400 mass shootings across the US this year, according to Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as an incident in which four or more people are injured or killed.
Welcome to a bold brave new America…
