Devonte Marnez Vonte Vance, 26, of Huntsville, Alabama, was shot and killed during the early morning hours of July 19, 2026. Police were called just before 1 a.m. to a business in the 600 block of Blake Bottom Road after a shooting; officers found Vance and 33-year-old Austin Taylor Morris of Toney with gunshot wounds. Vance was pronounced dead at the scene. Morris was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later died from his injuries.

Investigators with the Huntsville Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit say Vance, Morris and a third individual were involved in an altercation that escalated into gunfire. Police have not publicly detailed how the confrontation began, who fired what weapon, or the sequence of events. The third person was detained and questioned at the scene but was not publicly identified, and no arrest or homicide charge had been announced as of August 11, 2026. Findings were being presented to the Madison County District Attorney’s Office for review.

Vance was remembered by family and friends as a caring, affectionate father; his funeral was held August 1 at New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church in Harvest and he was interred at Valley View Memorial Gardens. Does anyone who knew Vance or witnessed the Blake Bottom Road incident have information that could help clarify what happened?