Gilbert Phillips was 20 when he was shot in the head while driving on the 3000 block of Pearson Avenue in Birmingham on March 3, 2008. After the gunfire his vehicle ran out of control and crashed into a utility pole on the 3300 block; he was taken to Baptist Medical Center-Princeton and did not survive. A passenger in the car also suffered a head injury.

Police made arrests in April 2008; two men, Courtney Scott and Kirby Reddick, were charged with capital murder. Public reports of the prosecution described testimony alleging Reddick was the shooter and the violence began after Phillips gave a mean look. Reddick was later tried and acquitted in April 2009. Public material is less clear about any final outcome for Courtney Scott.

Obituaries list Phillips as from Brighton. The facts record the shooting, the crash, arrests and an acquittal, but many questions about final resolution and motive remain. Did anyone in the Birmingham area see or hear anything about this shooting on March 3, 2008?