Tuscaloosa Police Charge Bama Basketball Player, 1 Other With Murder
Police in Tuscaloosa have charged a University of Alabama basketball player and one other man with murder after a Sunday morning shooting on the Tuscaloosa Strip left one woman dead.
The homicide -- the fifth in Tuscaloosa County so far this year, took place around 1:45 on a road off the Tuscaloosa Strip.
Captain Jack Kennedy of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit said police believe the victim, 23-year-old Birmingham woman Jamea Jonae Harris, was the passenger in a vehicle that was struck by gunfire after an argument on the Strip.
The driver of that vehicle took it to the Walk of Champions to flag down University of Alabama Police officers to help, but Harris did not survive.
The driver told police he had returned fire at his assailants and may have struck one of them.
After working the case all day Sunday, the VCU developed two suspects, Michael Lynn Davis, age 20, from Charles County, Maryland and Darius Hairston Miles, age 21, a member of the University of Alabama men's basketball team. Davis is not a student or affiliated with the school, Kennedy said.
One of the men was struck by gunfire, Kennedy said, but his injuries were not life threatening.
Both men were arrested Sunday and charged with capital murder. They have been placed in the Tuscaloosa County Jail without bond.
Kennedy said police believe the shooting stemmed from an argument between the two groups earlier in the night on the Strip.
Miles had recently just made his return to Tuscaloosa and the basketball program after a brief leave of absence for a personal matter. It was also announced on Saturday that he would miss the remainder of the year due to an ankle injury.
The junior had appeared in 53 games for the Crimson Tide, averaging 4.2 points per game. Miles saw action in six games in 2022-23 before his injury and leave of absence derailed his season.
According to a statement from the Alabama athletics staff Miles has "been removed from campus and is no longer a member for the Alabama men's basketball team".
All Homicides Investigated So Far in Tuscaloosa County in 2023
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