Two teenagers have been arrested and charged with murder in connection with the Alabama birthday party shooting, police said Wednesday.
Travis McCullough, 16, and Ty Reik McCullough, 17, were each charged with four counts of reckless murder, authorities said. They will both be tried as adults.
Four people were killed and 32 more wounded in the shooting at a 16th birthday celebration in Dadeville on Saturday night.
The McCulloughs are expected to face more charges in connection with the dozens of wounded victims.
“We’re going to make sure all those victims have justice, not just the deceased,” local district attorney Mike Segrest said.
Four victims remain in critical condition in the hospital, Segrest said Wednesday.
The party at Mahogany Masterpiece dance studio was held to celebrate Alexis Dowdell’s 16th birthday. Prior to the shooting, Dowdell’s mother asked anyone carrying a gun to leave the premises, according to multiple witnesses.
Dowdell’s brother, 18-year-old Phil Dowdell, was one of the people killed in the bloodbath. Alexis said Phil took action to protect her before he was shot, describing how he was pushing her out of the building when she slipped in blood. Alexis eventually made it out, but Phil did not.
“I got on my knees and he was laying face down,” Alexis said. “And that’s when I grabbed him. I turned him over, I was holding him.”
Shaunkivia Nicole “KeKe” Smith, 17; Marsiah Emmanuel “Siah” Collins, 19; and Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, 23, were also killed.
Holston’s mother said he went to the party late after a younger sibling feared trouble.
“If not for the concern of the family member, he would not have been there,” another of Holston’s relatives told AL.com. The gunfire began shortly after Holston arrived.
Authorities have not spoken publicly about a motive for the shooting.
“We can’t get into a motive right now, because that would be part of an ongoing investigation,” said Jeremy Burkett of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. “We can’t share that.”
The McCulloughs are due back in court by Friday for a bond hearing.