Man among 4 shot to death in Birmingham was cousin to 2 killed in another quadruple homicide: ‘They took a good spirit’

Family members of two men killed five months ago in a quadruple homicide in Birmingham’s Smithfield community are still reeling from their murders, and now the unthinkable has happened again.

They’ve lost another loved to gun violence in yet another mass shooting in Birmingham.

Stevie Andre McGhee, 39, was one of four people gunned down Saturday at a birthday party that also left 10 others wounded.

McGhee’s first cousins, with whom he was raised as brothers, were Terrell Edwards, 38, and Kevin McGhee, 38, both killed in the Feb. 16 quadruple homicide in Smithfield.

In fact, the gathering for Edwards and Kevin McGhee after their funeral was held at the same event venue where Stevie was killed Saturday night.

“We are broken. We are in shock,’’ said cousin Kawana Pollnitz. “We are speechless. We don’t know which way to go.”

“We’re still under the bus from Kevin and Terrell and it’s like they just keep rolling over our heads, our hearts, our minds,’’ she said.

The February mass shooting happened about 2:45 p.m. that Friday, Also killed were Talton “TJ” Tait, 36, and Cortez Ray, 32.

Kevin McGhee and Terrell Edwards were among four people shot to death in a quadruple homicide Feb. 16, 2024 in Birmingham.(Contributed)

Edwards was a city employee who started in Public Works and moved to Parks and Recreation. He clocked out just 15 minutes before the deadly shooting and his cousin Kevin McGhee picked him up.

Not long after, someone opened fire.

Edwards and Ray, one of whom was getting a car wash, fell in front of the home near the cars. Tait, a father of four, ran a short distance before collapsing on the side of a neighbor’s house.

All three were pronounced dead on the scene.

McGhee was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

One suspect has been charged.

Similarly, family members believe McGhee had just arrived at the birthday party Saturday night at the north Birmingham social club.

Birmingham police Deputy Chief Rodarius Mauldin said police quickly began receiving calls of multiple shots fired from the birthday party.

When officers arrived, they put out a max-emergency call for backup because of the large number of people gathered there. He described the scene as chaotic.

McGhee was found shot outside of the event venue. He was pronounced dead on the scene at 11:42 p.m.

Angela Weatherspoon, 56, and Markeisha Gettings, 42, were found shot inside the club. They also were pronounced dead on the scene at 11:42 p.m.

The honoree of the party was Weatherspoon’s son.

Multiple victims began showing up at area hospitals with gunshot wounds – some transported by Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service and others by private vehicle. Police initially said nine others were wounded but updated that number Sunday to 10.

Lerandus Anderson, 24, was pronounced dead at the hospital at 11:52 p.m.

No arrests have been made, and police and city officials have issued multiple pleas to anyone with information to come forward.

McGhee’s family said they’re stunned.

“It’s heart-wrenching,’’ said McGhee’s sister, Stenisha McGhee. “For the same thing to happen again, it’s definitely tragic.”

“I took that hard and I’m taking this even harder,’’ she said, “But I have to be strong for my mother.”

McGhee is being remembered for his kind heart and his willingness to always help others.

“Stevie was everything,’’ Pollnitz said. “He was going to be there for everyone and try to keep the family together.”

“He would drive from one side of town to the other to get your garbage out of the garage and take it to the curb,’’ she said.

Pollnitz said McGhee was devastated by the deaths of his two cousins, whom he considered brothers.

“Stevie hasn’t been himself since Kevin and Terrell passed away,’’ she said. “He was trying to find himself because he didn’t know life without them.”

McGhee’s brother, Stedarrius McGhee, was killed in a 2013 motorcycle crash in Birmingham’s Pratt City, leaving behind an infant daughter.

Stevie McGhee and Stenisha McGhee have been helping to raise her since then.

“He was a great dad to her,’’ Pollnitz said. “He was everything to her.”

McGhee was a woodworker.

“He was the best cabinet maker,’’ Pollnitz said. “And he could take a closet and make it look like a department store. With wood, he was the best.”

Following the February killings, the large, close-knit family has made it a point to do even more together.

Stevie McGhee

Stevie McGhee, 39, was among four people killed in a July 13, 2024, shooting at a Birmingham birthday party that als left 10 others injured.(Special to AL.com)

“Since Kevin and Terrell’s deaths, we as a family have been trying to do stuff every two to three weeks so we would have good memories,’’ Pollnitz said. “We can’t stop what the world is going to do, but we just want to be around each other for joyful times.”

Over the Fourth of July, the family gathered at Spring Valley Beach in Blountsville.

“We had a great day,’’ Pollnitz said.

The family got tickled because McGhee, known for his love of nice clothes, showed up with his beloved bookbag that contained several changes of outfits and shoes.

“He was a fantastic dresser,’’ his sister said. “He was always going to have the nice outfit with the nice shoes to match.”

“It was never a dull moment with him,’’ she said. “He was always smiling and joking.”

“He was funny and the life of the party,’’ she said. “He wasn’t going to miss anything.”

McGhee was always there for those in need, family said.

“You could not find one person that wouldn’t say, ‘He was always there for me. He always showed up for me,’’’ Pollnitz said.

“They took a good spirit,’’ she said. “Nobody could grasp what we’re going through unless they walked in our shoes.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.