Marsiah “Siah” Emmanuel Collins, 19; Philstavious Dowdell, 18; Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, 23; and Shaunkivia “Keke” Nicole Smith, 17.
The Tallapoosa County Coroner Mike Knox identified the victims as 23-year-old Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, Philstavious Dowdell, 18, Marsiah Emmanuel Collins, 19, and 17-year-old Shaunkivia Nicole Smith, PEOPLE confirms.
“They died from gunshot wounds,” Tallapoosa County Coroner Mike Knox tells PEOPLE, who adds that the autopsies were being performed on the victims.
At least 28 people were injured, some in critical condition, in the Saturday night shooting, which began around 10:30 pm local time at a dance studio in downtown Dadeville, according to theAssociated Press.
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“It’s really sad to see all the kids that were shot and the ones that are deceased,” Keenan Cooper, the DJ at the party, toldCNN. “And seeing all those bodies at the front door, all those kids are probably going to be traumatized.”
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) has yet to make an arrest.
Family and friends said Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell was attending his sister’s 16th birthday party when he was fatally shot, according toCNN.
Dowdell was a standout player on the Dadeville High School ’s football team and had a scholarship to play at Jacksonville State University in Alabama this fall, CNN reported.
“He was a very, very humble child. Never messed with anybody. Always had a smile on his face,” Dowdell’s grandmother, Annette Allen, told theMontgomeryAdvertiseron Sunday.
Collins, a former defensive end at Opelika High School, aspired to be a musician, according to AL.com. He was planning to go to college in the fall.
“He was a great big brother to his sisters,” Collins' father, Martin Collins, toldAL.com. “He was a funny, charismatic kid who loved to light up a room. He had a lot of my mom’s personality. He could do that just being in a house.”
Shaunkivia “Keke” Smith was a student athletic manager for the Dadeville High School track team and was set to attend the University of Alabama in the fall, according to CNN.
According to Holston’s mother Janett Heard, her son went to the party to check on a family member and was killed when he “unfortunately encountered the suspects,'' Heard toldAL.com.
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“Corbin was selfless when it came to his family and friends and always tried to be a protector. That’s just the type of person he was,” Heard said.
On Sunday, ALEA said officials were “working diligently to conduct a thorough and methodical investigation, to bring justice to bear to the victims and their loved ones.”
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden said they were “praying for [the victims'] families” ina statementover the weekend. “What has our nation come to when children cannot attend a birthday party without fear?” the president said.
source: people.com
