Man charged with murder in Alabama shooting that left 4 dead

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A man has been charged in connection with a mass shooting outside a nightclub that left four people dead and more than a dozen injured in Birmingham, Alabama, last month, police said Wednesday.

Damien McDaniel, 22, was arrested and charged with capital murder in connection with the Sept. 21 shooting in the Five Points South entertainment district, Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond said. McDaniel is also charged with 17 counts of attempted murder for those who were injured, the police chief said. Available court records do not indicate whether McDaniel has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

“Today was a major step toward justice,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said in a statement.

When asked at a news conference if more arrests were expected, Thurmond said he could only say the investigation was ongoing. Police previously said several shooters opened fire on a crowd waiting in line outside a nightclub. Investigators are still looking into the possibility that someone targeted one of the victims, the police chief said. He declined to discuss a possible motive.

McDaniel is also charged in connection with two other fatal shootings in the city over a three-day period in September. Three other people were also charged in one of the shootings.

“This is just one step moving forward. There is much more to come in these investigations as we prepare for trial,” Thurmond said.

The Sept. 21 shooting in the bustling Five Points South neighborhood unnerved the neighborhood and put the city in the national spotlight.

Anitra Holloman, 21, of Bessemer, a suburb of Birmingham; Tahj Booker, 27, of Birmingham; Carlos McCain, 27, of Birmingham; and Roderick Lynn Patterson Jr., 26, of Birmingham, were killed in the shooting.