On a tragic Sunday evening in Selma, Alabama, the life of 24-year-old Lakin Keanna Smith was cut short. On March 5, 2023, in the 100 block of Cummings Circle, a burst of gunfire erupted around 11:00 p.m., leaving a scene of chaos and sorrow. Smith, a Black female, was fatally wounded in the shooting. Another individual, 24-year-old Cameron Struggs, was also killed in the incident and was found deceased at the scene with gunshot wounds.
Responding to the reports of shots fired, Selma
police officers en route to Cummings Circle noticed a vehicle with its hazard lights on. This vehicle was transporting the gravely injured Lakin Smith to Vaughan Regional Medical Center. Despite the urgent efforts to save her, Smith succumbed to her injuries at the hospital. A third victim, a 16-year-old female, was also injured in the shooting but her injuries were reported as non-life-threatening. Two other people who were in the vehicle with Smith were unharmed.
The investigation into the double homicide quickly led to a suspect. The day after the shooting, on March 6, 2023, the Selma Police Department's Criminal Investigation Division arrested 22-year-old Michael Latrell Brown. Investigators, after speaking with witnesses, identified Brown as the primary shooter. He is facing multiple serious charges, including two counts of capital murder, two counts of discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle, and one count of second-degree assault. Following his arrest, Brown was held in jail without bond. The community mourned the loss of Lakin Smith, with her funeral services held on March 18, 2023, at the Selma University Jemison-Owens Gymnasium.
