Anthony Scott

Anthony Scott was a 17-year-old Black male from Scottsboro, Alabama, remembered by friends as a great teammate with an awesome personality and the biggest heart. A former football player at Section High School, his life was cut short in the summer of 2019.

On the evening of Wednesday, July 3, 2019, Anthony was with several other teenagers at a home in the 19000 block of Highway 35. The group was handling several handguns that had been stolen from vehicles in the area. According to the teens, while they were messing around with the weapons, a gun held by 16-year-old Jacob Isbell went off, striking Anthony in the face. The other teens drove Anthony to Highlands Medical Center, and from there he was airlifted to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He died from his injury the following day, on July 4, 2019.

When Scottsboro police began investigating, the teens initially told them a false story, claiming they had found Anthony injured along County Road 17 and had picked him up to help. During questioning, however, Isbell admitted they had agreed on the lie before arriving at the hospital. He then confessed to accidentally shooting Anthony. Investigators determined that Anthony had not been involved in the thefts of the guns. Two of the three stolen guns were found hidden in the woods, and a loaded gun with the safety off, believed to be the one Isbell fired, was found at the home.

Anthony’s family publicly questioned the official narrative. His mother, Pamela Mitchem, stated she believed her son was “executed.” She pointed to a trauma report that she said indicated Anthony was shot at "zero range," which seemed to contradict the story of an accidental shooting from across a room. She also noted that her son arrived at the hospital without his phone, identification, or shoes. The Scottsboro police chief declined to comment on the specifics of the open investigation.

Police arrested Jacob Isbell and charged him as an adult with first-degree assault. After Anthony died, the charge was upgraded to manslaughter. Another juvenile was charged with first-degree theft in connection with the stolen weapons. Isbell was held on a $15,000 bond, which he later posted.

During a preliminary hearing in August 2019, a judge ruled there was sufficient evidence for the manslaughter charge to proceed. The case was bound over to a grand jury. As of that hearing, the case was pending further legal action.