Alabama shooting: No bond for suspects in Sweet 16 birthday party violence

TALLAPOOSA COUNTY, Ala. - A judge on Wednesday denied bond for five suspects charged with reckless murder in connection with a shooting at a Sweet 16 birthday party that killed four people and injured dozens in Alabama, according to court records and state investigators.

Tallapoosa County District Judge Clayton Turner ordered Wilson LaMar Hill Jr., 20, of Auburn; Johnny Letron Brown, 20, of Tuskegee; and Willie George Brown Jr., 19, also of Auburn, to be held without bond. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said that the judge also denied bond for two juvenile suspects. The state agency previously identified the pair as Tyreese "Ty Reik" McCullough, 17, and Travis McCullough, 16, both of Tuskegee.

A sixth suspect, a 15-year-old from Tuskegee, is awaiting a hearing, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said.

The six are each charged with four counts of reckless murder in connection with the April 15 shooting in Dadeville that killed four people and injured 32 others. 

During a Tuesday bond hearing, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Special Agent Jess Thornton testified that 89 bullet casings were found at the scene.

"Multiple shell casings. Blood everywhere," Special Agent Jess Thornton said. The crime scene was like nothing he'd encountered in 18 years with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, he said.

Four people were killed and 32 others were injured in a mass shooting at a Sweet 16 birthday party in Dadeville, Alabama on April 15, 2023. (FOX 5)

Survivors described a bloody and chaotic scene as gunfire erupted at the birthday celebration for Dowdell’s sister. Thornton said investigators believe seven handguns were used during the shooting and that at least one may have been altered with an illegal "switch" to make it fire more rapidly.

"Witnesses said it sounded like a machine gun," he said.

Investigators have not discussed a motive or what they believe led to the shooting. How the shooting began and who fired first is expected to a key issue for the defense as the case moves forward.

Thornton said the six defendants are relatives or friends. They were not invited to the party but had traveled from Auburn and Tuskegee to attend it. 

Four people were killed and 32 others were injured in a mass shooting at a Sweet 16 birthday party in Dadeville, Alabama on April 15, 2023. (FOX 5)

Thornton said five of the six defendants admitting being at the party and firing guns. The sixth suspect did not admit being there, but the co-defendants said he was there and fired a gun, Thornton said. The investigator said at least five of the six met after the party at a parking lot in a nearby city. 

At the hearing Tuesday, George Bulls, a lawyer for Willie Brown, suggested that one of the slain partygoers had fired first, asking the investigator if there were at least some statesments about one of the deceased individuals starting the shooting. 

Thornton replied that was true. 

Thornton testified that Corbin Holston, 23, of Dadeville, was found with a 40-caliber gun sitting on his chest. Thornton said the position of the gun, which had been fired, struck him as odd. "Almost like it was placed there," Thornton said.

According to the investigator, there were about 50 to 60 people crammed inside the party venue, which measured about 38 feet by 26 feet, when the gunfire erupted. 

Two Dadeville High School seniors, Phil Dowdell, 18, and Shaunkivia Nicole "KeKe" Smith, 17, were killed. Also killed were Holton, and 19-year-old Marsiah Emmanuel "Siah" Collins.