University of Alabama basketball player arrested after deadly shooting near campus

By Dennis Romero -

A former University of Alabama basketball player has been behind bars since Sunday night after being arrested in connection with a deadly shooting near campus, authorities said.

Darius Hairston Miles, 21, of Washington, DC, was one of two men arrested after several people exchanged fire in vehicles just off the Strip, the nightlife district adjacent to the Tuscaloosa campus, according to the Office of the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff.

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He was booked as a murder suspect and was being held without bail.

The victim was 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris.

None of the other parties were affiliated with the institution.

It was not clear if Miles had retained a private attorney for the case.

The public defender's office in Tuscaloosa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Alabama forward Darius Miles (2) searches for a pass as he falls to the ground against Jackson State during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Vasha Hunt/AP

Alabama Athletics said Sunday that it offered its deepest condolences to the victim's family and friends and announced that Miles was no longer part of its basketball team.

Miles's name does not appear on the institution's online basketball player roster as of Sunday night.

The university said in a statement: "He has been removed from our campus."

The basketball program announced Saturday that Miles, a junior forward, had been ruled out for the rest of the season after aggravating a preseason injury.

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It was not clear if Miles was no longer a student or if the institution can expel him without due process.

The sheriff's statement referred to his situation with the university in the past tense.

The shooting occurred early Sunday in the nightlife district.

Sheriff's officials did not say which of the two suspects allegedly opened fire or whether they believe both did.

"It appears the shooting was the result of a minor argument that occurred between the victims and the suspects after they met on the Strip," the sheriff's office stated.

Just before 2 a.m., a driver approached a University of Alabama Police vehicle on the Walk of Champions, adjacent to Bryant-Denny Stadium, to report that a passenger, still inside, he had been fatally shot, according to the office.

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The driver told investigators that someone in another vehicle opened fire at his vehicle just off the Strip and he returned fire, possibly injuring someone in the opposite vehicle.

Detectives with the Sheriff's Violent Crimes Unit located two suspects after speaking with witnesses and viewing security video, according to the office.

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One of the two suspects was wounded in the shooting, the office said.

He did not identify which or mention if he was hospitalized.

The other suspect, also charged with murder, was identified as 20-year-old Michael Lynn Davis of Charles County, Maryland. 

The university said it is cooperating with the investigation.

Members of the university community affected by the violence can contact campus counselors, including on Monday, the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, the university said in its statement.