{
  "id": "2023-01-15-university-of-alabama-strip-shooting",
  "slug": "university-of-alabama-strip-shooting-2023-01-15",
  "institution": {
    "name": "The University of Alabama",
    "shortName": "UA",
    "state": "AL",
    "type": "public-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "UA Alert",
    "enrollment": 38320
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2023-01-15",
    "type": "shooting",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "resolution": "confirmed-threat",
    "headline": "Shooting near a campus entertainment district kills a 23-year-old woman",
    "headlinePublic": "Shooting near a campus entertainment district kills a 23-year-old woman",
    "summary": "Shortly before 2:00 AM CST on January 15, 2023, a minor argument on The Strip near campus escalated into a fatal shooting that [killed 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris of Birmingham](https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/17/us/darius-miles-murder-charge-university-alabama-basketball-tuesday/index.html). UA basketball player Darius Miles admitted to providing the handgun to Michael Lynn Davis, who fired into the victims' car. [Both were charged with capital murder](https://abcnews.go.com/US/university-alabama-basketball-player-darius-miles-removed-team/story?id=96455851), and Davis was later convicted and sentenced to life without parole.",
    "outcome": "Jamea Jonae Harris, 23, was killed. Michael Lynn Davis was found guilty of capital murder by a Tuscaloosa County jury after a four-day trial and just over an hour of deliberation, and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole by Tuscaloosa County Circuit Judge Daniel F. Pruet. Darius Miles, who was removed from the Alabama basketball team after his arrest, was charged with capital murder for allegedly providing the firearm; his trial was repeatedly delayed (including a defense motion seeking the judge's recusal) and was set to begin December 1, 2025.",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 1,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "Shortly after 1:45 AM CST on January 15, 2023",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "The University of Alabama Police Department responded with other agencies to reports of a shooting that occurred on Grace Street near The Strip.\n\nThe shooting occurred on January 15th just before 2:00 AM. Suspects fled the area heading east on University Blvd in a yellow Dodge Charger. Police have one person in custody and are working to confirm details of the incident and additional suspect information. Police do not believe there is any current threat to the campus community.\n\nWitness descriptions of the remaining suspect are:\n\nSex: Male\nRace: Black *Updated based on additional witness information*\nHeight: Tall\nWeight: Slim build\nHair: Not provided\nClothing: Black Pants, green jacket\n\nAnyone who has any additional information about either occurrence is asked to call University Police at 205-348-5454 or Crime Stoppers at 205-752-7867(STOP). Crime prevention information is published in UAPD’s Safer Living Guide published at https://saferliving.ua.edu/.\n\nThis information is being sent as part of UA’s commitment to providing campus safety information.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceDescription": "Official .edu artifact seq 1 (P2 flip)",
      "annotations": [
        "Tuscaloosa Police and UAPD were dispatched to the Walk of Champions at Bryant-Denny Stadium at approximately 1:45 AM CST on January 15, 2023",
        "The victim was found shot in a vehicle; suspects had already fled in a yellow Dodge Charger",
        "CATCH-UP b51 P2 .edu flip. Independent second-blind EQUAL sha256 293a6b5e2e993a3eae32928f5b22f9dfa2a6f1ccee4b6dc89042a4ce8215e813 chars=1065. Reconstruction replaced with official artifact. No demote (old text was never confirmed). SPN not attempted after 500 flap"
      ],
      "characterCount": 1065,
      "confidence": "high",
      "sourceUrl": "https://police.ua.edu/uapd-responds-to-off-campus-shooting/"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "update",
      "timestampApprox": "Early morning on January 15, 2023, after arrests were made",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "Police have provided an update to the public safety notice emailed to campus earlier this morning. The only suspect being sought was taken into custody before the notice was sent. Information about a second suspect and vehicle being sought was incorrect and based on limited information available at the time.\n\nA vehicle carrying a shooting victim stopped on University Blvd. in front of the Walk of Champions. The street was closed in the area while police investigated. It is now open. Neither the victim nor the shooter is a member of the UA community. The Tuscaloosa Police Department is leading the investigation.\n\nPublic safety notifications and advisories are posted on the UAPD website and updated as needed.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceDescription": "Official .edu artifact seq 2 (P2 flip)",
      "annotations": [
        "Darius Miles, a junior on the UA basketball team, was among those arrested and charged with capital murder",
        "The university confirmed the shooting resulted from a minor altercation on The Strip",
        "CATCH-UP b51 P2 .edu flip. Independent second-blind EQUAL sha256 6ef95d6eab7f8e593ee664afc93dfb0472046b8c58fcbe7f13d7de5bc6ccd969 chars=716. Reconstruction replaced with official artifact. No demote (old text was never confirmed). SPN not attempted after 500 flap"
      ],
      "characterCount": 716,
      "confidence": "high",
      "sourceUrl": "https://police.ua.edu/uapd-responds-to-off-campus-shooting/"
    }
  ],
  "context": "In the early morning hours of January 15, 2023, a fatal shooting occurred on Grace Street near The Strip, the popular entertainment district adjacent to the University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa. [Tuscaloosa Police and UAPD responded at approximately 1:45 AM CST](https://police.ua.edu/uapd-responds-to-off-campus-shooting/) to find 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris of Birmingham fatally shot inside a vehicle. The shooting stemmed from a minor verbal altercation between the suspects and victims on The Strip. Court documents revealed that [UA basketball player Darius Miles admitted to providing the handgun to Michael Lynn Davis](https://www.npr.org/2023/01/17/1149502778/darius-miles-alabama-basketball-shooting-jamea-harris) immediately before the shooting. Davis, 20, then fired into the victims' car, killing Harris. Both Miles and Davis were charged with capital murder and held without bond. The university's athletics department [immediately removed Miles from the basketball team](https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/15/us/darius-miles-murder-charge-university-of-alabama-basketball/index.html). Davis was subsequently convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. The case drew national attention due to Miles's status as a Division I athlete and raised questions about firearms access among student-athletes.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "A UA basketball player provided the weapon used in the fatal shooting, leading to his removal from the team and capital murder charges",
    "The shooting resulted from a minor argument on The Strip, underscoring how quickly situations can escalate in late-night entertainment districts near campus",
    "The victim, Jamea Jonae Harris, was not affiliated with the university"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "UAPD Responds to Off Campus Shooting (UA Police)",
      "url": "https://police.ua.edu/uapd-responds-to-off-campus-shooting/",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "Darius Miles: University of Alabama basketball player provided gun for shooting (CNN)",
      "url": "https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/17/us/darius-miles-murder-charge-university-alabama-basketball-tuesday/index.html",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Darius Miles, Alabama basketball player, faces murder charges after shooting (NPR)",
      "url": "https://www.npr.org/2023/01/17/1149502778/darius-miles-alabama-basketball-shooting-jamea-harris",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "University of Alabama basketball player Darius Miles provided gun in fatal shooting (ABC News)",
      "url": "https://abcnews.go.com/US/university-alabama-basketball-player-darius-miles-removed-team/story?id=96455851",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Michael Davis Strip murder trial (The Crimson White)",
      "url": "https://thecrimsonwhite.com/121290/news/michael-davis-strip-murder-trial-continues-wednesday/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "shooting",
    "fatal",
    "off-campus",
    "student-athlete",
    "alabama",
    "capital-murder",
    "the-strip"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-02",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-09-27",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}