/BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A Birmingham police officer fatally shot a man Monday afternoon in Ensley after reports that he was waving a gun, trying vehicle doors and firing toward homes, authorities said.
The shooting occurred about 3:45 p.m. in the 3100 block of Avenue I, between 31st and 32nd streets, according to the Birmingham Police Department. Police had not publicly identified the man as of early Tuesday, nor had they released the officer’s name.
Police said callers initially reported that a man was walking through the neighborhood with a firearm and pulling on vehicle doors. While officers were responding, the reports were updated to say the man was knocking on doors and had fired shots toward residents or a home.
An officer arrived within about 60 seconds, police said, and gave the man repeated commands to drop his weapon. The man advanced toward the officer while armed, police said, and the officer fired, fatally wounding him.
No officers or other civilians were reported injured. At least one home was damaged by gunfire, police said.
The police department established a large perimeter along Avenue I as investigators worked to determine where shots were fired and whether more than one residence was struck. Authorities said the investigation remained active Monday night.
“It’s very unfortunate when an officer has to take a life, and our hearts go out to the family of those who were involved in this situation,” Birmingham police Sgt. LaQuitta Wade said Monday. “However, we are going to continue to protect the citizens of Birmingham.”
The department had not said late Monday whether the officer had been placed on administrative leave, whether body-camera video exists or when it might be released. Police also had not said whether the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation would participate in the inquiry.
Monday’s shooting is the third fatal shooting involving a Birmingham police officer this year, and the second in less than two weeks.
On Aug. 13, a Birmingham officer shot and killed 38-year-old Matthew Sean Massey in a parking deck at UAB St. Vincent’s Birmingham. Police said Massey had assaulted a McDonald’s employee, ran from an officer into the deck and then tried to take the officer’s Taser after it was deployed. The officer was placed on administrative leave, and the department said its homicide unit would investigate before submitting findings for review by the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office.
In June, Birmingham officers fatally shot 19-year-old Xavier Gray in Midfield while attempting to take him into custody on warrants tied to a May shooting that injured three people, including a 15-year-old. Police said Gray pointed what officers believed to be a weapon at them. Gray was taken to UAB Hospital, where he died.
The three shootings occurred as Birmingham officials report a sharp decline in killings compared with the city’s recent peak in violence. Chief Michael Pickett said last week that the department has recorded a 73% reduction in homicides since 2024, which he attributed in part to expanded work with federal and state agencies.
Since 2024, the U.S. attorney’s office and Birmingham police have worked together on about 165 cases that produced more than 130 federal indictments, officials said. The Justice Department recently announced more than $440,000 in funding for Birmingham police as part of a $1.3 million award for the Northern District of Alabama.
The reported decline in homicides does not resolve questions surrounding police use of deadly force. Each officer-involved shooting is a distinct investigation, and the public record in Monday’s case remained limited as of early Tuesday.
Anyone with information about the Ensley shooting can contact the Birmingham Police Department’s Homicide Unit at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.