On a Sunday evening in Birmingham, Alabama, 63-year-old Trudy Mustin, a Black female from Bessemer, was killed. The incident, which is being investigated as a double homicide, took place on October 16, 2023. That evening, at approximately 6:55 p.m., officers from the Birmingham Police Department's West Precinct were called to the 1500 block of Alemeda Avenue after receiving a report of a person shot.
The ShotSpotter system also registered multiple rounds fired in the nearby 1100 block of 15th Street Southwest.
Upon their arrival, officers discovered Mustin inside a vehicle, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Birmingham Fire and Rescue personnel transported her to UAB Hospital with life-threatening injuries, where she was later pronounced deceased. The preliminary investigation suggests that the shooting was the result of an escalating argument between two groups. On the night she was killed, Mustin was reportedly helping a friend. As she was driving, another car drove by and opened fire on her side of the vehicle.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, police detained multiple persons of interest who were then transported to Birmingham Police Department Headquarters for interviews with homicide detectives. However, these individuals were subsequently released. As of October 2025, more than two years after her death, no arrests have been made in connection to Mustin's murder. Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama has reported receiving zero tips in the case, despite a $5,000 reward being offered for information that leads to the solving of the case. Mustin's son has publicly expressed his pain and his desire for justice, hoping that seeing his mother's killer held responsible will bring his family some measure of closure.
