A family outing at a children’s dance recital in Mobile turned deadly on Sunday, June 1, 2025, when 27-year-old Carl Williams III was fatally shot inside the Saenger Theatre. Williams had been recording his daughter’s performance moments before an argument with another man, identified as 27-year-old Marcus Sanders, escalated and ended with Williams found dead at the scene. A bystander was also wounded by a bullet in the ankle.

Marcus Sanders surrendered to authorities and was charged first with murder and first-degree assault; those charges were later elevated to capital murder. Sanders’ attorney has asserted he acted in self-defense. Williams was remembered by family and friends as a devoted father of two young daughters, a 2015 Ben C. Rain High School graduate, an entrepreneur with a clothing line and a youth sports coach. The community held a balloon release in his honor.

If anyone attended the recital or has information about the altercation, please share what was seen or heard.