BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The city of Birmingham and surrounding communities experienced a deadly weekend after a total of four shootings, each resulting in a fatality.
The shootings are taking their toll not only on those who live and work where they occurred, but also on the law enforcement agencies that respond to them.
“It’s a horrible thing to deal with any day, but especially around the holidays,” said Lieutenant Joni Money of the Jefferson Co. Sheriff’s Department.
The JCSO is dealing with the aftermath of the most recent of the weekend’s shootings after a man was shot and killed at a business in Center Point early Sunday morning.
Sunday’s shooting in Center Point followed a trio of fatal shootings that Birmingham police investigated Saturday in Lakeview, Southside and a neighbourhood in the West Precinct on Princeton Avenue that left at least one neighbour shaken.
“It still doesn’t feel really safe at night because of the darkness, how dark it is up and down the street at night,” said a man who lives in the neighbourhood.
“I’ve got grandchildren and things and I feel for them. They’re walking up and down the streets in this area and I don’t feel too safe for them, so I try to tell them to stay indoors as much as possible after dark”.
It’s not just the neighbours who are affected, Lt. Money says her heart goes out to the BPD.
“Having to deal with this from start to finish is a very difficult thing to do, and it takes its toll on a person after a while,” Money said. “That’s something that people often forget, that law enforcement, we’re human.”
She urges everyone to stop and think before they shoot.
“If you fire a gun, you can’t take that bullet back. We say it over and over again, that can be forever and it’s going to change somebody’s life, even if you don’t kill somebody, your life could be changed,” Money said.
If you have any information about any of the four shootings, you can report it anonymously through Crimestoppers.