Spring Break shooting in heart of Gulf Shores; Innocent bystanders could easily have been hit

Spring Break shooting in heart of Gulf Shores; Innocent bystanders could easily have been hit

Rafiq Sh’mare Joel Bradley, a 21-year-old man from Fairhope, was arrested and charged with attempted murder, shooting into an occupied dwelling, disorderly conduct and reckless endangerment after firing a gun that injured a juvenile boy between the Gulf Shores Public Beach pavillion and Beach Rd. near the intersection of Hwy. 59 on March 27 around 8:51 p.m.
Two other adults and a juvenile were also charged with disorderly conduct stemming from the fight that led to the shooting. All four of those charged during the Spring Break incident live in Baldwin County. The juvenile who was shot was treated and released from the hospital the following morning, according to Gulf Shores Police.
According to GSPD, officers responded to a call about a fight in which one person had a gun and shots had been fired at the 100 block of Gulf Shores Pkwy. Officers arrived quickly and found one person who had been shot multiple times. They immediately located and arrested Bradley, who was found near the crime scene.
Appropriately, Baldwin County District judge Judge William Scully set a nearly $1.1 million bond on March 29 for the 21-year-old, as he fired multiple shots and could easily have hit bystanders in the area.
Additional bonds were set for Bradley’s firing into an occupied dwelling, disorderly conduct and reckless endangerment charges. If he bonds out of jail, Bradley is required to remain under house arrest until his next court hearing. The names of the two other adults and one juvenile charged with disorderly conduct following the shooting have not been released.
According to prosecutors, the shooting victim was shot in the back while running from the scene after Bradley brandished his gun and fired at least eight rounds near the main entrance of the beach in an area where pedestrians often congregate. The victim was hit multiple times, according to police.
Cell phone recordings making the rounds on social media through social media show a man pulling out a gun and shooting multiple times towards the Gulf from the west sidewalk at the main entrance to Gulf Place. After firing his pistol, the man appeared to hide the weapon in bushes near where he fired the shots.
“We appreciate your patience while we closed the area and conducted the investigation,’’ the GSPD posted on its facebook page. “The shooting occurred during a physical altercation between several subjects. The parties involved appear to be a mixture of juveniles and adults.’’ The Gulf Shores Police Department is asking anyone who was a witness or captured footage of the incident to please contact them at 251-968-243
Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office, Gulf Shores Fire and Rescue, and the Orange Beach Police Department also responded. The roads around Gulf Place were closed to traffic while police gathered evidence.
“I looked back and there was like a fight going on with a bunch of girls, and then next thing I know a guy pulls a gun and fires six rounds,” Katie Shaw told 1819 News.
“We were just walking up on the beach and everything and we’re coming back to get our bikes and then we hear boom, boom, boom. So we just started running,” another witness told FOX 10 News.
“We saw a lot of people running, screaming, a lot of children crying which was pretty sad but it was a very insane experience,” Nicholas Boudreaux, another witness, told FOX 10.
“We were just sitting around and all of a sudden both my husband and my phone started alarming,” said visitors Vicki Marchaza. “The alarm was that we were to shelter in place. There was a shooting. It was very alarming because I’ve been here for three months and there’s been nothing here. It has been so pleasant, you feel so safe we walk around all the time.”