Fender bender on I-59 ramp leads to fatal gunfire in Birmingham
A man was shot to death on an Interstate 59 off-ramp Saturday afternoon, and Birmingham police captured the suspect within two hours.
The investigation began about 2 p.m. when the city’s North Precinct officers were dispatched to a report of a person shot on the I-59 southbound ramp at the 31st Street North exit.
Officers arrived to find the victim unresponsive, and fire medics pronounced him dead on the scene.
Officer Truman Fitzgerald said the preliminary investigation indicates the victim and the suspect were involved in a minor crash on the off-ramp. They got into an argument and the suspect the shot the victim, police said.
The suspect fled but was quickly identified and taken into custody by the police department’s Special Enforcement Team.
At least part of the argument was captured on surveillance video from a nearby gas station.
Fitzgerald said the suspect is undergoing questioning by detectives.
Investigators will present the evidence to the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office to determine if charges will be filed, he said.
Police have not yet released the identity of the victim or the suspect.
The homicide is Birmingham’s 11th so far in 2025, and the third in under 24 hours.
A 22-year-old man was shot to death about midnight in Ensley, and an 18-year-old Birmingham City Schools student was killed about 20 minutes later on Saturday in north Birmingham.
In all of Jefferson County this year, there have been 16 homicides, including the 11 in Birmingham.
Anyone with information in any of the cases is asked to call detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.