Alabama police officer shot, killed at motel

Published 7:06 am Wednesday, June 3, 2020

A police officer was fatally shot Tuesday night when responding to a call at a motel in Alabama, local news outlets reported.

He was identified as Moody Police Sgt. Stephen Williams, 23, who had spent three years with the department, news outlets reported. He was shot shortly before 9:30 p.m. and taken by ambulance to a hospital, AL.com reported.

“His loss is a loss for all of Alabama,” Jay E. Town, U.S. attorney for the northern district of Alabama, said in a statement. “This serves as yet another heartbreaking and stark reminder of the perils encountered by law enforcement each day.”

“He was just a good man, a good person, fun to be around,” Moody Police Chief Thomas Hunt told AL.com.

News outlets reported there was a possible standoff at the motel with a heavy police presence, and two suspects have been taken into custody.

Video from the scene showed dozens of law enforcement vehicles and a medical helicopter at a Super 8 motel. ABC 33/40 reported that a camera at a nearby business captured audio of what sounded like a barrage of gunfire.

Moody is a city in St. Clair County about 22 miles (35 kilometers) east of Birmingham.

Amar Fouda told al.com he heard a lot of noise from the room next to his. “I heard like an AK-47,” he said. Fouda said he ran into the bathroom and hid in the tub.