The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office says one man was shot twice Saturday afternoon at an apartment complex in the Whistler area after a verbal dispute between neighbors escalated into gunfire, and a warrant has now been issued for the man accused of pulling the trigger.
What Deputies Say Happened
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies responded at approximately 1:22 p.m. on Aug. 29 to 2104 Wolf Ridge Road, the address of Ridge Manor Apartments, following a report that someone had been shot. Arriving deputies found the victim, identified as Kelvin Pettway, suffering from one gunshot wound to the chest and one to the thigh. Mobile County EMS responded to the scene and transported Pettway to USA Hospital for treatment.
Detectives with the Major Crimes Unit responded to the apartment complex to lead the investigation. According to the sheriff’s office, the victim was interviewed at the hospital and told investigators that a verbal altercation had broken out with a man identified as Jimmy Napier, who also lives in the apartment complex.
How the Confrontation Turned Violent
Deputies say that during the argument, Napier retreated into his own apartment before returning armed with a handgun. According to the sheriff’s office, Napier then discharged two rounds at the victim, striking him once in the chest and once in the upper leg, before fleeing the scene. Investigators say Napier has not been located since the shooting, and several witnesses at the apartment complex have been interviewed as part of the ongoing investigation.
The sheriff’s office says the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office was consulted following the investigation, resulting in a warrant issued for Napier on a charge of Assault First Degree, Alabama’s most serious assault charge, typically reserved for cases involving serious physical injury caused with a deadly weapon or under circumstances demonstrating extreme indifference to human life.
Search for the Suspect Continues
A Be On the Lookout, or BOLO, alert has been issued to surrounding law enforcement agencies for Napier, a standard step in cases where a suspect flees before deputies can make an arrest. BOLO alerts allow neighboring police departments and sheriff’s offices to be on alert for a wanted individual who may attempt to cross jurisdictional lines to avoid capture, broadening the search beyond the immediate area where a crime occurred.
The sheriff’s office says the victim’s injuries, while significant, appear to be non-life-threatening at this time. Officials have not released additional details about the nature of the dispute between the two men beyond describing it as a verbal altercation that escalated when Napier retrieved a firearm from his residence.
A Pattern Familiar to Investigators
Shootings that stem from disputes between neighbors or acquaintances, rather than random violence, represent a significant share of gun violence cases investigated by sheriff’s offices and police departments nationally. Cases where a suspect retreats to retrieve a weapon before returning to confront a victim, as deputies describe happening in this incident, are treated with particular seriousness by prosecutors, since the pause for a suspect to arm themselves can undercut claims of an impulsive, purely reactive use of force — a distinction that can matter significantly once a case moves through the court system.
The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office says its investigation remains active and is asking anyone with information about Jimmy Napier’s whereabouts to contact the sheriff’s office or Mobile County Crime Stoppers. Investigators have not said whether additional charges may be added as the Major Crimes Unit’s investigation continues.
Understanding Alabama’s Assault Charges
Alabama law separates assault charges into multiple degrees based largely on the severity of injury and the circumstances of the attack. Assault First Degree, the charge issued against Napier, is generally reserved for cases involving serious physical injury inflicted with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, or assaults committed under circumstances demonstrating extreme indifference to human life. That places the alleged conduct described by deputies — retrieving a firearm during an argument and firing twice at the victim — squarely within the conduct the statute is designed to address, distinguishing it from lower-degree assault charges that typically apply to less severe injuries or altercations not involving a weapon.
Investigators’ decision to consult with the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office before securing a warrant reflects standard practice in serious violent crime cases, where prosecutors and law enforcement typically coordinate closely on charging decisions to ensure a case is built on a legal foundation likely to hold up as it proceeds through the court system, rather than filing charges hastily before an investigation is complete.
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The Search for a Suspect Who Fled
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Cases where a suspect flees the scene before an arrest can be made often extend well beyond the initial incident, sometimes remaining open for weeks or months as investigators follow up on tips generated by BOLO alerts and public appeals for information. The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office’s Major Crimes Unit typically continues actively working a case like this one even after the immediate scene investigation concludes, following leads on a suspect’s known associates, family connections, and likely hiding places while the case remains open.