The Crimson Tide weren't victorious in their face-off against the University of Georgia in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on Saturday night, but a resident of the city had more luck against two would-be robbers that same evening.
Tuscaloosa police were called out to Magnolia Apartments around 7:30 Saturday evening, and when they arrived they learned a shooting victim had been taken to a local hospital. As officers investigated, they learned that the "victim" in this case was actually the aggressor in what appears to have been an attempted robbery that was foiled by an armed citizen.
Police said Kurtae’vious Earl Tyson, 22, of Oxford, and Daronte Collins, 22, of Oxford, attempted to rob a 25-year-old Tuscaloosa man. Shots were fired during the incident, leading to Tyson being shot and critically injured.
He later died from his injuries.
Tyson's accomplice is now facing a slew of charges including felony murder, first-degree robbery, attempted murder and shooting into an occupied vehicle.
So far authorities have released very little information about the incident, so we don't know if this was a targeted robbery or a crime of opportunity.
We also don't know whether the 25-year-old was inside his vehicle when the alleged robbery took place, though the charge of shooting into an occupied vehicle certainly suggests that a car was involved at some point during the encounter.
What does seem clear from the charges, however, is that police believe Collins and Tyson were the aggressors and the 25-year-old was acting in self-defense when he opened fire.
Alabama law allows the use of deadly force when someone has a reasonable belief that another person is using or about to use unlawful deadly physical force against them. The state's self-defense statute also specifically recognizes the right to use deadly force against someone committing or attempting to commit several serious felonies, including robbery.
Alabama is also a "stand your ground" state, so someone who is justified in using deadly force and is in a place where they have a right to be generally has no duty to retreat before defending themselves.
We don't know if the armed citizen in Tuscaloosa had an opportunity to retreat, but based on the charges filed against Collins, it doesn't appear that authorities believe he was legally obligated to do so.
As for the felony murder charge that is facing, under Alabama's felony murder statute, someone who causes the death of another person while committing or attempting to commit certain felonies, including first-degree robbery, can be held responsible for that death.
We don't know what Tyson and Collins allegedly wanted from the 25-year-old, whether they knew him beforehand, or what prompted the gunfire. We don't even know whether the armed citizen routinely carried a firearm or simply happened to have one available when the alleged robbery unfolded.
What we do know is that police say two men attempted to rob him, shots were fired, and one of the alleged robbers was fatally wounded while the intended victim survived... and was apparently uninjured in his encounter with the pair.
Though there are still a lot of unanswered questions about this incident, at least we know that much. Whatever Tyson and Collins allegedly had planned for Saturday night, their intended victim had a plan of his own: stay alive.
Editor's Note: Do you appreciate Bearing Arms's reporting on defensive gun uses like this one? Support our work so we can keep bringing you the truth.
Join Bearing Arms VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member