Inset: Marcus Sanders (Metro Jail). Background: The Saenger Theatre in Mobile, Alabama where Sanders allegedly killed a man during a children’s dance recital (WPMI).
A 27-year-old man in Alabama has been arrested after he allegedly got into an argument and began shooting in the middle of a children’s dance recital, killing one person and injuring another.
Marcus Deangelo Sanders was taken into custody over the weekend and charged with one count of murder in the slaying of Carl Williams III, a 27-year-old “girl dad” who was at the venue watching one of his daughter’s perform, authorities announced.
According to a news release from the Mobile County Police Department, officers at about 6:30 p.m. on Sunday responded to the Saenger Theatre in the 100 block of South Joachim Street after multiple 911 calls reported someone had been shot.
“Upon further investigation, officers discovered a dance recital was being held at the Saenger Theatre when a male subject was involved in an argument with a known individual inside of the building,” the release states. “It was discovered the subject shot the known male victim during the dispute, with a bullet also striking a second victim in the process.”
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Authorities said they were able to identify the shooter as Sanders, but he had fled the area on foot. However, a short while later, Sanders turned himself over to authorities and was transported to the Metro Jail late Sunday evening where he was booked on the aforementioned murder charge.
“To bring this to a child’s dance recital is despicable,” Mobile Police Chief William Jackson said in a statement immediately after the shooting.
Mobile Mayor Sandy Simpson offered similarly damning comments about the incident.
“It is shocking that anyone would bring a loaded gun to a child’s dance recital — and even more unimaginable that someone would fire a weapon in a crowded theater, just feet from where young children were performing on stage,” he said in a statement posted to Facebook. “There is no conflict, dispute, or disagreement worth putting so many people at risk or subjecting children to such lasting trauma. It’s sickening.”
Williams was the father of two daughters, ages 5 and 6, according to a report from The Birmingham News. He was at the Saenger Theatre that night to watch them perform on stage.
Williams’ uncle, Keyon Williams, told the newspaper his nephew was a former standout athlete in high school who was “always supporting his daughters.” He described the victim as “a fun-loving, easy-going guy who wanted to see others succeed.”
Michelle Murphy, whose child was also performing on Sunday when the shooting took place, spoke to Mobile Fox affiliate WALA about the incident.
“You could tell a little bit of a commotion broke out then adults started standing up,” she told the station. “It went on for maybe a few seconds, and before my daughter’s father and his wife could even say get down, they’re fighting. There went the first round, and then three followed.”
She and several others emphasized that the organization putting on the recital, Danze 101, handled the tragic situation with professionalism despite the chaos.
“They still made it a point to check on the kids,” she said of the group.
