In the early hours of Saturday, March 9, 2024, a private vehicle rushed an unresponsive Lamar King to Princeton Baptist Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Arriving at approximately 2:20 a.m., the 41-year-old Black man was suffering from a gunshot wound. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, he was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.
The Birmingham Police Department launched a homicide investigation.
Detectives’ preliminary findings suggested that King may have been shot while inside a vehicle in the Mason City neighborhood, specifically in the 1900 block of 13th Way Southwest. He was survived by his family and friends.
Five days after the shooting, on March 14, 2024, authorities arrested 30-year-old Kelvin Andra Edwards Jr. at a residence in East Birmingham. He was charged with capital murder in connection with King's death and booked into the Jefferson County Jail, where he was held without bond. At the time of the arrest, investigators stated they had not determined if King was the intended target of the shooting.
After spending more than two years in jail, Edwards went to trial in September 2026. Before the trial began, prosecutors offered him a plea agreement for a reduced charge of intentional murder with a 25-year sentence, but Edwards rejected the offer and proceeded with the capital murder trial. Prosecutors sought a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
After a week-long trial, a Jefferson County jury reached a unanimous verdict. They found Kelvin Edwards Jr. not guilty, and he was acquitted of the capital murder charge.
Following the acquittal in September 2026, Edwards was released from custody. The murder of Lamar King remains unsolved. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Birmingham Police Department Homicide Unit at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
