In the early morning hours of April 21, 2024, gunfire tore through the Pratt neighborhood of Birmingham. Officers from the Birmingham Police Department’s West Precinct responded around 2:15 a.m. to the 10 block of Holt Avenue and found 44-year-old Richard Lavar Edwards Jr. in the front yard of a residence with an apparent gunshot wound. Birmingham Fire and Rescue arrived but Edwards was pronounced dead at the scene.

Edwards, a Black man and United States military veteran, is remembered by those who knew him as joyous, kind, and positive. The Birmingham Police Department processed the scene and opened a homicide investigation, but has not released a motive, named any suspects or persons of interest, or announced any arrests. The investigation remains open as authorities seek information from the public.

If anyone in Pratt or the surrounding area saw or heard anything that night or has information about Richard’s death, please contact the Birmingham Police Department.