• Legal

by Mary Spiller

August 24, 2024

Three Charged In Livestreamed Murder Of Young Mother

Asia Alyce Poole's fatal shooting was livestreamed on Facebook.

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Three people have been charged in the killing of Asia Alyce Poole, who was fatally shot at a Birmingham, Alabama, apartment complex. The incident was streamed live on Facebook.

Justin Jamond Hendrix, 20, and Taylor McCloud, 22, have been charged with murder in the killing of the 21-year-old woman. Both have also been accused and charged with the attempted murder of Poole’s best friend after he survived the shooting. 

BcCloud and Hendrix are being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail. 

The alleged incident began when 19-year-old Janiyah Hendrix — Justin’s sister — fought with Poole just before the shooting. Although she fled the scene, she’s been charged with first-degree auto theft. Janiyah was booked into county jail under a $30,000 bond.

According to sources close to Poole, she and Janiyah were involved in an ongoing dispute over an unnamed man. That tension escalated in the parking lot of the Birmingham apartment complex of Monarch Ridge, where the shooting took place.

Video evidence, which came in the form of a Facebook livestream, showed Poole and Janiyah physically fighting in the parking lot. After the pair moved to the breezeway of the complex, other people arrived on the scene just before a flurry of bullets was fired at Poole outside of her vehicle.

When police arrived on the scene, Poole was found unresponsive and bleeding in the “breezeway of her apartment building. Birmingham firefighters pronounced her dead on the scene at 10:31 p.m.”

Police reported that they documented at least 168 rounds fired.

Following the shooting, Janiyah fled the scene in Poole’s Ford sedan, which was later abandoned in a chicken spot parking lot.

Poole was a single mother to a kindergarten-aged daughter.

Residents of the complex and witnesses to the shooting said it was like “something out of a movie.” They described seeing multiple different shooters in masks and carrying Glock switches to “assault-type rifles.”

One resident said, “They came for this. They were so organized. They had everything blocked off, everyone corralled in.”

According to police, the investigation into Poole’s shooting is still ongoing.

“We do believe there were more than just these two shootings, so we’ll see where that leads us,’’ Officer Thurmond said.

Police ask anyone with information or additional videos of the incident to call detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

RELATED CONTENT: California Man Charged With Murder After Live Stream Shows Female Murder Victims Lying on the Floor

• News

by Mary Spiller

August 24, 2024

Special Needs Man Dies After Allegedly Being Left In Hot Car By Caretaker

Dontarious Batts was in his mid-20s and non-verbal.

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A North Carolina man named Dontarius Batts, in his mid-20s with special needs, has died after allegedly being left in a hot car by his caretaker for several hours on Aug. 20. According to police reports, police were called at around 5 P.M. at the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office. They were contacted by 55-year-old Rogers Lee Inge Jr., Batts’ caretaker, who claimed that he was responsible for the death of a person under his care.

After peacefully being taken in by police, Inge — who is an employee at Universal Health Care and responsible for taking care of Batts — told arresting officers that he brought Batts to work with him at his second job at Cleveland High School.

He reportedly continued to tell police that he left Batts — who is both autistic and non-verbal — in the car while he went to do his janitorial duties with the windows up and the engine turned off at 8 A.M. He checked on him once at 10, and he was allegedly alive at the time. 

Inge returned to his car after completing his day of work at 4:17 P.M. and found that Batts had died. 

Inge was captured saying in the original 911 call, “It’s my fault. I didn’t think it was that hot today. I didn’t check on him. I forgot. I was working.” 

Inge is being held at Johnston County jail with a bond of less than $35,000, and he’s been released from his job at the school. 

According to People, the temperature at the time of the incident was 81 degrees and sunny at the high of the day. However, the National Weather Service warned that the inside of a vehicle parked in the sun can get up to 50 degrees higher than the listed outdoor temperature. 

Batts’ sisters, Tierra and Tiquana, started a GoFundMe in Batts’ name. It has since raised over $2,500.

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