An Alabama man is charged with four counts of capital murder for allegedly killing four people, all within the same family, Wednesday at his residence within the Lake Forest subdivision of Daphne.
21-year-old Jared Smith-Bracy is accused of forcibly entering his residence on Melanie Loop and killing four people inside. The incident happened sometime after 6 p.m.
Smith-Bracy was taken into custody in a wooded area behind the home by Daphne patrol officers responding to the scene on a call of shorts fired.
Smith- Bracy was taken to the Daphne Police Department where he was interviewed by detectives, and charged with four counts of capital murder.
It has been reported police were called to investigate a shooting and found one person dead in the home and three dead in the backyard.
Each count carries the potential sentence of life in prison or the death penalty.
Daphne police said the suspect in a quadruple homicide confessed to the crime and an earlier arrest on a criminal mischief charge that may have triggered the killing spree.
At a news conference held Thursday afternoon, police said suspect Smith-Bracy admitted guilt. He is being charged with capital murder.
“He was very cooperative in his interview, very polite but showed no remorse,” said Sgt. Jason Vannoy with the Daphne Police Department.
Vannoy said 911 calls regarding shots fired started coming in shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday. When officers arrived, they encountered four dead victims and quickly found Smith-Bracy hiding in a wooded area behind the home on Melanie Loop.
According to authorities, three of the victims were shot and one is believed to have been bludgeoned to death a pickax. Three of the victims were related to the suspect and included his brother, 27-year-old Jeremy Smith; his grandmother, 72-year-old Barbara Smith; and his grandfather, 80-year-old Leonard Smith. The fourth victim was a family friend, 70-year-old Sheila Glover, police said.
Investigators said they believe the killings may have been premeditated. Police arrested Smith-Bracy for criminal mischief that morning day for damaging a door at the residence. After bonding out of the Daphne Jail around 5 p.m., he got a ride to back to the house. Smith-Bracy allegedly grabbed the driver’s gun, forced his way into the home and began the attack.
According to investigators, the driver called 911 when he heard gunfire then went to the police precinct to wait to speak with officers.
Police said the driver legally owned the gun.
Police said they believe three victims were shot in the backyard first, then the grandfather was killed in his bedroom. After the grandfather was killed, police said they believe the suspect returned to the backyard and bludgeoned the other victims as well.
Baldwin County Chief Assistant District Attorney Teresa Heinz said Smith-Bracy said that while that a lot of investigation still has to go on, prosecutors are seeking capital murder due to the fact that more than two people were killed as a result of one action.
The case will be heard in Circuit Court. His bond hearing is set for Friday.
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