Alabama basketball star Darius Miles wept as he was perp-walked to a police car after being charged with capital murder on Sunday.
Miles, 23, was caught on camera as he was led out of Tuscaloosa County Jail in handcuffs, calling out ‘I swear I love you more than you can imagine’ as he was loaded into a waiting cop car.
Tuscaloosa Police Captain Jack Kennedy said that the shooting occurred early Sunday morning in the Strip off University Blvd, near campus. He said Jamea Harris, 23, of the Birmingham area was shot and killed.
Miles, 21, a junior reserve forward from Washington, D.C., and Michael Lynn Davis, 20, of Charles County, Maryland, were both charged with capital murder.
Darius Miles (left) and Michael Lynn Davis (right) have both been charged with capital murder
Jamea Harris, 23, of the Birmingham area was shot and killed, police have confirmed
The capital murder charge arose because the death involved shots fired into a vehicle, Kennedy added.
‘At this time, it appears that the only motive was a minor altercation that these individuals had with the victim as they were out on The Strip,’ Kennedy said in a news conference Sunday evening. They didn’t have a previous relationship, he said.
He said the driver of another vehicle, in which Harris was a passenger, approached campus police near Bryant-Denny Stadium at about 1:45 a.m. saying that someone had shot into the vehicle, and he fired back.
The driver said that his return fire was in self defense and that he may have struck a suspect, who was then treated for non-life-threatening injuries at a local hospital.
According to AL.com, the shooting happened in the 400 Block of Grace Street off of University Boulevard, close to Bryant-Denny Stadium, where the Crimson Tide football team play in front of 100,000 fans.
Miles played college basketball for Alabama but has now been removed from the team
Miles falls to the floor during a recent game for Alabama, against Jackson State in December
Police chief Kennedy told reporters that after speaking to multiple witnesses and viewing video surveillance, they identified two suspects who were then located and interviewed, before being charged.
Miles was a reserve on the fourth-ranked Crimson Tide team. Alabama had announced before Saturday’s game against LSU that he was out for the season with an ankle injury.
Prior to that, he had been away from the team with a ‘personal matter’ and coach Nate Oats had said on December 28 that he ‘wasn’t sure how long he’ll be out.’
He went on to add: ‘We’re supporting him through it and trying to help him through it. That’s why he wasn’t on the bench tonight. It’s a personal matter, it’s not an injury and we’re not quite sure how long he’ll be out.’
The shooting happened close to the 100,000 capacity Bryant-Denny Stadium early Sunday
The University of Alabama have confirmed that Miles is ‘no longer’ on their basketball team. Above is a stock image of the Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa
He was back on the bench on Sunday, and watched the game alongside the team’s other players.
His bio has since been removed from the athletic department website and the university said that he ‘has been removed from campus’ and is no longer on the team.
‘The University of Alabama’s utmost priority is the safety and well-being of the campus community,’ a university statement said. ‘We are grieved by the incident that occurred near campus last night and extend our deepest condolences to the victim’s family and friends.’
Neither the driver of the other vehicle nor Harris nor Davis appeared to be affiliated with the university, Kennedy said.
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