David Gibbs Westbrook, Jr. was 50 when he was shot and killed on the evening of May 23, 2022, while sitting in his vehicle in the 100 block of 54th Street North in Birmingham after walking his dog at a nearby soccer field. He had worked as a researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham for more than two decades and volunteered with Birmingham AIDS Outreach.

Police say an unknown male wearing dark track pants with a white stripe and a gray hooded sweatshirt with a light-colored design approached Westbrook’s car at about 10:51 p.m. and opened fire as Westbrook tried to back out; the vehicle then struck a utility pole. Birmingham officers found Westbrook with a gunshot wound, and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Surveillance footage shows a person of interest running from the area, and Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama has offered up to a $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. The homicide investigation remains open.

If anyone saw the shooting, the person running from the scene, or was in the area that night, please share what is known with investigators.