SARA HEY, EUNICE. "We'll never do another Black Friday again ever.". We are proud of our personnel tonight.". Brocato expressed gratitude for the actions of the officer who killed the shooting suspect. The Alabama attorney general's office cleared the officer, saying he acted "reasonably under the circumstances" in the encounter that spanned approximately five seconds. There are two vacant anchor stores which were once Sears and Belk Children's and Home. The mall reopened Friday morning after being shutdown for hours. The store occupies 2,061 square feet (191.5m2) and became one of the 32 LEGO Brand Retail stores nationwide upon its opening. 2018 The Associated Press. Bradford had a firearm, and the officer mistook him for the shooter. >> THIS WILL PROBABLY BE MY LAST TRIP TO THE GALLERIA. After the shooting incident over here, honestly, I felt pretty safe with the Hoover Police Department, the security they have, said Leslie Rosa, who has been coming to the Riverchase Galleria her entire life. 2 men found drugged after leaving NYC gay bars were killed, medical examiner says, Deadly shooting at Ala. mall on Thanksgiving, Deadly shooting at Alabama mall on Thanksgiving, Death by gun: Top 20 states with highest rates, Pittsburgh woman missing for 31 years found alive in Puerto Rico, School shooting survivor has emotional audition on "American Idol". I WAS INSIDE A LITTLE BIT AGO, AND IT LOOKS LIKE PRETTY MUCH EVERY STORE INSIDE THE GALLERIA IS OPEN TODAY AND THEY ARE NOT LETTING THOSE TRAGIC EVENTS: BACK FROM SHOPPING. "The City of Hoover tweeted at 10:44 p.m. that the "incident at the Galleria has been brought under control by Hoover PD." Please enter valid email address to continue. Bradford. (Emantic Bradford, Sr. via AP). https://www.al.com/expo/news/erry-2018/11/61e9ae7871585/riverchase-galleria-shooting-w.html, Protestors shut down hwy 31 pic.twitter.com/xoCHlhyW9R. SHE JOINS US NOW WITH HOW PEOPLE ARE FEELING TODAY. Captain Rector also stated that they believe the initial altercation may have more people involved than originally suspected, and clarified that a separate investigation by the Hoover Police Department would occur for the police shooting. "New evidence now suggests that while Mr. Bradford may have been involved in some aspect of the altercation, he likely did not fire the rounds that injured the 18-year-old victim," Hoover Police Captain Gregg Rector said in a statement. "I am so thankful for all the messages, prayers and gifts we have received,'' said her mother, Julie Moore Bennett. "We are devastated by the incident that happened tonight in our shopping center. Riverchase Galleria, locally known as The Galleria, is a large, super-regional shopping mall and mixed use development in Hoover, Alabama, in the Greater Birmingham metropolitan area. Any activity that threatens the well-being of the property. [11] As part of the renovation, the first Von Maur in Alabama opened in the space vacated by Macy's/Proffitt's/Belk. Jeremy Daniel lives out of town but has driven over an hour to visit the Riverchase Galleria for over 20 years. Hoover police Capt. A motion for summary judgement is a request to the court to evaluate the merits of a case prior to the case going to trial. HOOVER, Ala. (WBRC) - An argument inside the Riverchase Galleria on July 3 ended in a shootout that killed an 8-year-old boy and injured 3 others, according to Hoover Police. Hundreds of shoppers were witnesses to Thursday nights harrowing shooting at the Riverchase Galleria mall in Hoover. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Belk dissolved the separate Proffitt's organization, and on March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's store at Riverchase became the mall's first Belk store. He was born on June 18, 1997. Derzis said police are working promising leads, but did not say if they had identified suspects. [2] Police responded to a shooting at the mall where two people were shot. Here are some of the questions we don't yet have answers to: In this Thursday, Nov. 22, 2018 photo, a police officer speaks to a woman after gunfire erupted Thanksgiving night at the Riverchase Galleria in Hoover, Ala. Police responding to a fight inside the shopping mall shot and killed a man who had brandished a weapon, authorities said Friday. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. The city leaders apologized to the Bradford family for the shooting and answered what questions they could regarding the events. They (the shots) just kept going. HOOVER, Ala. Hoover police said Tuesday they have made two additional arrests in connection with a deadly shooting at the Riverchase Galleria on July 2. Among the injured was 8-year-old Royta Giles Jr. His mother did not want her name used, but spoke to AL.com about what happened. [35] One of Bradford's relatives called for the resignation of both Chief Derzis and Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato for their actions shortly after Bradford's death. Police had said he was fleeing the scene and brandishing a weapon. [2][14], It subsequently transpired that Bradford's movements in the critical seconds were more complicated than originally thought.[15]. The Jefferson County Coroner's Office identified the deceased as Emantic Fitzgerald Bradford, Jr., 21, of Hueytown. [40] Derzis revealed on the 3rd that the ALEA had asked city leaders to not reveal critical information while the investigation was in progress. Two shootings inside the Riverchase Galleria on Thanksgiving night left an 18-year-old and 12-year-old seriously injured and a 21-year-old shot to death by Hoover police. "He did so as a professional. He fell near the other two males and his firearm slid across the floor. Bradford as an immediate deadly threat to innocent civilians and thus shot Bradford to eliminate the threat," and therefore, that he, "did not commit a crime under Alabama law when he shot and killed E.J. HOOVER, Ala. (WBRC) - David Alexander is the Hoover police officer who was assigned foot patrol inside the Riverchase Galleria on Thanksgiving Day of 2018. The city asked people to avoid the area and later shared this tweet: "Our HPD officers acted heroically and professionally tonight. (AP Photo/Kim Chandler). Many shoppers who were hoping to take advantage of the Black Friday sales were thankful to be alive after the terrifying experience. [26], Protests were organized by a Birmingham activist group called Justice League on the following Saturday. The Shelby County Sheriffs Office, the Alabama State Troopers and Pelham police are among other agencies who responded to the Galleria. Killing of Emantic Fitzgerald Bradford Jr. Surveillance Video of Shooting at Riverchase Galleria (November 22, 2018), National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Office of the Attorney General of Alabama, "E.J. As Allgrove and his mother made their way to their car to leave the mall he says they saw several officers in front of The Childrens Place, a childrens store. The crowd of shoppers near the Foot Action store were running away from where I heard gunshots, but the armed individual was moving toward where I heard gunshots. Penney.[4]. In July 2020, 8-year-old Royta Giles Jr. was killed in a shooting at the Riverchase Galleria. Six of those eight were transported to area hospitals, including a 70-year-old Montevallo woman who ultimately was airlifted to a Mobile hospital after suffering broken bones and internal bleed in a fall as thousands were fleeing the gunfire. Bradford initially runs in the opposite direction (away from JC Penney), creating a gap between himself and the gunshots. In that same court document, Officer Alexander stated that he is a graduate of the Tuscaloosa Police Academy and has been a Hoover police officer since 2017. The locations of the shots were to the right side of the head, the base of the neck, and the right portion of the hip. In March 1987, the mall added its first Macy's store at center court, the company's first store in Alabama. [18][19][20], On July 3, 2020, shots were fired near the food court of the mall at 3:18 PM EDT. In 2006, Belk acquired the Parisian store chain from Saks, Inc. When I heard about the shootings at first, I didnt come for a couple of months, just so it would die down.. The mayor praised Hoover police and firefighters for their quick response to the shooting. "Unfortunately, an indidvual lost his life. Bradford. Protestors carry a sign reading Justice for E.J. during a protest at the Riverchase Galleria in Hoover, Ala., Saturday, Nov. 24, 2018. They also said "Bradford brandished a gun during the seconds following the gunshots, which instantly heightened the sense of threat to approaching police officers responding to the chaotic scene.". Beginning today, we will provide weekly updates to news media each Monday by 10:30 a.m. Central time. (AP Photo/Kim Chandler). Officials said the meeting is related to what happened at the mall Thursday night. Bradford's eulogy", "Bradford family, Attorney Ben Crump hires pathologist to perform autopsy", "Hoover asks state for permission to release information about police shooting at Galleria", "Mall shooting video 'consistent with' forensic exam, Bradford family lawyer says", "Groups join forces to bolster police shooting protest, call for 'war' against Hoover", "Hoover postpones Christmas tree lighting after threats of protest due to police shooting", "Lawsuit IDs Hoover officer who shot EJ Bradford", "Officer who shot EJ Bradford named in federal lawsuit", 20152016 University of Missouri protests, Donald Trump photo op at St. John's Church, 20202023 MinneapolisSaint Paul racial unrest, Rest in Power: The Enduring Life of Trayvon Martin, Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter Movement, Holding a Black Lives Matter Sign in America's Most Racist Town, Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm, George Floyd Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act, Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today Act, List of police reforms related to the George Floyd protests, 2020 deployment of federal forces in the United States, Black maternal mortality in the United States, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Killing_of_Emantic_Fitzgerald_Bradford_Jr.&oldid=1137527654, African Americans shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United States, Law enforcement controversies in the United States, November 2018 events in the United States, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles with bare URLs for citations from March 2022, Articles with PDF format bare URLs for citations, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Police body camera, mall surveillance, private videos.