In the late afternoon of August 1, 2020, Marquette Milous Carter, a 27-year-old African American man, was in the 900 block of 45th Street North in Birmingham, Alabama, when an argument broke out during a dice game. The dispute escalated, and shots were fired. Officers from the South Precinct responded to a call of a person shot at approximately 5:33 p.m. and found Carter suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to UAB Hospital for medical attention but ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
The preliminary investigation by the Birmingham Police Department suggested that the shooting was the result of the altercation that occurred during the dice game. Despite eyewitness accounts of the dispute, no arrests have been made in connection with Carter's death, and the case remains open. Authorities have continued to seek information from the public that might lead to the identification and apprehension of the person or persons responsible for his death.
Tragically, the violence affecting the Carter family did not end with Marquette's death. Less than two months later, on September 13, 2020, his 71-year-old grandmother, Javanna 'Midge' Cotton Owens, was also fatally shot. She was walking down a street in Birmingham when she approached a vehicle, seemingly familiar with the occupants, and was shot. An arrest was made in Owens's case after Birmingham police used license plate reader technology to track the suspect's vehicle. Thirty-seven-year-old Kartavius Vines was charged with capital murder in her death and was held without bond. However, this arrest provided no new leads in the unsolved killing of her grandson.
