Dietrich Lamont Boone Sr., 45, was killed in a downtown Birmingham intersection on July 4, 2024. He was found near a car that had crashed into a power pole along 7th Avenue North in the Central City area and was taken to UAB Hospital, where he died. Investigators recovered at least 50 shell casings at the scene, and a witness who livestreamed afterward reported seeing a ski mask–clad shooter firing from a moving vehicle. A gun was found near Boone’s body and it is believed he returned fire before collapsing. Police say Boone appeared to have been specifically targeted.

Authorities later charged 28-year-old Montez Malike Ollison of Fultondale with capital murder. Prosecutors say the motive appears to be retaliation for a 2021 incident in which Boone fatally shot Travio Ollison; that earlier shooting was ruled justifiable self-defense and Boone was not charged. Officials say multiple shooters were involved; evidence cited against Ollison includes cell phone records allegedly placing his phone near the scene and ballistic testing of recovered casings. The defense calls the case circumstantial, noting no eyewitness identification in a lineup, no DNA directly linking Ollison, and that a gun recovered from his apartment could have been brought there by someone else.

Boone had previously suffered family tragedy when his son was fatally stabbed in 2018. Does anyone have information about the July 4 shooting or the events leading up to it?