No bail for Dadeville birthday party shooting suspects, judge rules
The six people each charged with four counts of reckless murder in the Dadeville Sweet 16 birthday party that left four people dead and 32 injured will be held without bail until trial, a judge ruled on Wednesday.
Those charged with reckless murder and being held in the Tallapoosa County Jail are: 20-year-old Johnny Letron Brown of Tuskegee; 19-year-old Willie George Brown Jr. of Auburn; 20-year-old Wilson LaMar Hill Jr. of Auburn, and brothers Ty Reik McCullough, 17, and Travis McCullough, 16, of Tuskeegee.
A 15-year-old, who has not been publicly identified, is also charged.
Killed in the shooting were Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell, 18, Shaunkivia Nicole “Keke” Smith, 17, Marsiah Emmanuel “Siah” Collins, 19, and Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, 23.
Judge Clayton Kim Taylor wrote in the order that the six posed a flight risk and that their being free pending trial “could a real and present danger” to themselves and others.
An “Aniah’s Law” hearing was held Tuesday.
Aniah’s Law passed in 2022 in response to a crime that attracted statewide attention. Aniah Blanchard, a 19-year-old college student from Homewood, was abducted from a convenience store in Auburn in October 2019. A month later, authorities found Blanchard’s body in rural Macon County.
The law expanded the list of crimes for which defendants can be held without bail.
This is a developing story and will be updated.