Youth arrested in funeral home shooting

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, March 15, 2005

A suspect in a shooting outside Miller Funeral Home was arrested, according to reports from the Selma Police Department.

A 17-year-old was arrested and charged with second-degree assault, police said, and is being held at the Dallas County Jail.

According to police, the young man was fighting with a second suspect, a 16-year-old, who is now wanted by the SPD.

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The SPD doesn’t release the names of suspects under 18.

“The charges stem from an altercation between the two teens,” Lt. David Evans, SPD Public Information officer, said.

The two started shooting at each other, Evans said, and Carlandra Johnson, a Birmingham resident, was injured when she walked out of Miller Funeral Home at about 3 p.m. Thursday.

The 29-year-old was making arrangements for her mother, Dorothy Johnson.

Witnesses on the scene said Johnson was shot in the arm.

“It doesn’t appear to be life-threatening,” Interim Chief James Martin said when the shooting occurred. “She was just a bystander that was shot.”

“The bullet wasn’t meant for her,” Miller Funeral Director Theo Neely said.

Police say the 16-year-old is known to investigators and should be arrested soon.

Both suspects will be charged as adults, according to the SPD.

Other arrests may follow. In an earlier interview, Martin identified three males involved in the shooting, according to reports from witnesses.

“The investigation is ongoing,” Evans said.

The 16-year-old, police say, was out on bond for a second charge at the time of the shooting on Thursday.

“(He is) being charged as an adult in reference to the downtown shooting that occurred June 26, 2004,” a police release stated. “(He) was charged with discharging a firearm into an occupied building in that case.”