By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
BIRMINGHAM — A family already grieving one loss was struck by another tragedy Saturday night when a Tennessee father of seven and his elderly relative were killed during a domestic shooting inside a Birmingham apartment.
The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office identified the victims as 43-year-old Sonny Arrington of Clarksville, Tenn., and 76-year-old Carlton Rufus Allen of Birmingham. Relatives had gathered at Tuxedo Terrace in Ensley for a barbecue after attending the funeral of 29-year-old Ja’Oree Marquel Brown-Allen, who was shot to death in Fairfield one week earlier.
Police say 35-year-old Jasmine Allen — Arrington’s niece and Carlton Allen’s great niece — opened fire just before 11:30 p.m., striking her sister and killing both Arrington and Allen. The sister survived and was taken to UAB Hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening. Allen is charged with capital murder of two or more people and attempted murder.
Investigators believe more than a dozen shots were fired from outside the apartment. “We don’t know what started the argument,” said Officer Truman Fitzgerald. “We know this is one large family.”
Birmingham’s Special Enforcement Team, acting on a tip that Allen was headed toward Bessemer, located her at a residence and took her into custody within two hours. Fitzgerald called the quick arrest a testament to strong regional law enforcement cooperation.
Arrington, described by loved ones as a devoted husband and father, leaves behind a wife and seven children. “His loss has left the family navigating grief and uncertainty, especially as the holidays approach,” a GoFundMe page stated.
Saturday’s killings mark Birmingham’s 78th and 79th homicides of the year. Brown-Allen’s death the previous week also remains under investigation, with a 27-year-old woman charged in that case.