2 teens arrested in Alabama Sweet 16 shooting that killed 4 and injured 32

DADEVILLE, Ala. — Two teenage brothers were arrested in connection with a shooting that left four people dead and 32 injured at a weekend Sweet 16, authorities said Wednesday.

The boys, 16-year-old Travis McCullough and 17-year-old Ty Reik McCullough from Tuskegee, were taken into custody on charges of reckless murder on Tuesday night, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Sgt. Jeremy Burkett told reporters.

The teens are being charged as adults.

Prosecutors and police revealed few details on the arrest, such as the weapons used or possible motive for the attack. The suspects are brothers, an FBI spokesperson said.

Gunfire erupted at 10:34 p.m. Saturday at a dance studio on Broadnax Street in Dadeville where friends and family were celebrating the birthday of a 16-year-old girl, police said.

The four people killed were identified by police as Shaunkivia Smith, 17; Marsiah Collins, 19; Corbin Holston, 23; and Philstavious Dowdell, 18. Dadeville is about 25 miles northwest of Auburn University.

Four people remained hospitalized and listed in critical condition on Wednesday, officials said.

Fifth Judicial Circuit District Attorney Mike Segrest struggled to maintain his composure, thinking of Alexis Dowdell, the birthday girl whose brother was among those killed.

“There’s an uncut cake and unburnt 16 candles that never got lit,” Segrest said. “Lexi’s brother was one of the victims. On her 16th birthday party, she knelt by her brother as he took his last breath. That’s what we’re dealing with.” 

An emotional Segrest said he knows the parents of several of the victims.

“These are my kids, these are our kids,” the prosecutor said. “Don’t mess with out kids. Do not mess with our kids.”

The shooting started about an hour after someone with a gun was barred from the celebration, said party DJ Keenan Cooper, who reported hearing shots from multiple attackers.

Police said they’re at the early stages of the probe and are still in great need of the public’s help, especially from party guests who have yet to speak to investigators.

“If you were at the venue that night — so you were physically at the venue — if you have not come forward, meaning you have not contacted law enforcement, please hear me, I absolutely want you to do that,” Burkett said. “We need you to come forward for the families, for these victims.”

Dadeville Police Chief Jonathan Floyd also pleaded for the public’s help and patience, saying the complicated probe can’t be rushed.

“If we hurry, if we’re careless and we do make an arrest but it doesn’t result in a conviction, it does not result in ultimate justice for our victims, then we’ve failed our victims,” Floyd said. “Please be patient, please be understanding.”

It wasn’t immediately clear when the suspects would appear before a judge or if they had hired or been assigned defense attorneys.

The Dadeville attack was the latest mass shooting to plague the United States.

• Four people were fatally shot in Bowdoin, Maine, on Tuesday; Joseph Eaton, 34, was later arrested in connection with the killings, police said.
• Five people were killed at a Louisville bank last week before responding police killed gunman Connor Sturgeon, a 25-year-old employee of the bank.
• Audrey Hale, a 28-year-old former student at a private Christian school in Nashville, returned to campus on March 27 and killed three young children, a substitute teacher, a custodian and the school’s headmistress.

Jamie Morrison reported from Dadeville, and David K. Li from New York City.