Wrongful death case against ex-Alabama basketball players Brandon Miller, Darius Miles settled

The wrongful death lawsuit brought against former Alabama basketball players Brandon Miller and Darius Miles, along with fellow defendant Michael “Buzz” Davis, has ended with a settlement, according to federal court documents. All parties agreed to drop the case with prejudice and a trust fund was set up for the benefit of the late Jamea Jonae Harris’ lone child.

After mediation, the parties filed a joint motion to dismiss the suit with prejudice, and U.S. district judge Anna M. Manasco ordered the dismissal and approved the trust on Monday. The order notes that all parties are responsible for their own court costs.

The court documents did not specify how much money was in the trust, nor any further details.

Representation for the plaintiffs declined comment. Lawyers for each of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment from AL.com.

Harris was shot and killed in the early hours of the morning on Jan. 15, 2023, near the Strip in Tuscaloosa, following a dispute between Miles, Davis and Harris’ boyfriend, Cedric Johnson.

Miller, now on the second year of a four-year contract with the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets that could pay him over $49 million in guaranteed money according to Spotrac, drove to the Strip that night as he was Miles’ ride.

A police investigator has testified in court that Miles texted his teammate, Miller, asking for his “joint,” which the investigator testified meant Miles’ gun, which he had left in the backseat of Miller’s car.

Later, on Grace Street, the gun was retrieved from the back of Miller’s car, per court testimony. A police investigator testified that Miles said Davis retrieved Miles’ gun from the back of the car. Davis, who was not on the team, is accused of firing at Harris’ boyfriend, Cedric Johnson. Police say Johnson also fired.

Attorney Jim Standridge, representing Miller, said in 2023 that Miller was already on his way to pick up his teammate, Miles, when Miller received the text. Standridge also said Miller never touched the gun, wasn’t involved in the exchange of it and “never knew that illegal activity involving the gun would occur.”

Miller was not charged with a crime. A grand jury indicted Miles and Davis on capital murder charges, and both Miles and Davis await trial.

The federal lawsuit was filed by Harris’ estate, led by her mother, Decarla Heard.

“Miles, Davis and Miller knew or should have known that bringing a dangerous weapon to a dispute and discharging said weapon would likely result in harm to those around them,” the original lawsuit, filed in October of 2023 in the Northern District of Alabama, reads.

Miller’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that Miller did not own, load or fire the gun, and did not hand it to the eventual shooter. Former judge Scott Coogler denied the motion, writing in an April 2024 opinion that a reasonable juror “could conclude it was foreseeable that someone might use the firearm to hurt someone else.”

Miles and Davis have been jailed without bond since the incident, awaiting trial on the capital murder charges. Davis’ jury trial is scheduled to begin May 5 in Tuscaloosa, while a date has not yet been officially set for Miles.

Miles was denied bond again by Tuscaloosa Circuit Court judge Daniel Pruet in August. Miles’ attorneys in the criminal case have argued Johnson initiated the incident and that Miles provided the gun for protection. Davis’ attorney, John Robbins, has argued self-defense on behalf of Davis. Prosecutors have said Davis shot first.

Tuscaloosa county district attorney Hays Webb told reporters after that hearing in August that he hoped the Miles case would go to trial in 2025.

“I’m hopeful,” Webb said. “But I can’t say. As the judge noted, everybody is dealing with lots of cases obviously. The judge noted in the courtroom that he’s got two capital murder cases pending in his courtroom that are older than this one.”