Pleaded Guilty: Sentenced to life imprisonment without parole
Convictions
Capital Murder x3
The Vestavia Hills church shooting occurred on June 16, 2022, at 6:22 p.m. local time in Vestavia Hills, a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama. A man entered the St. Stephen's Episcopal Church and opened fire during a potluck meeting, which the church had previously advertised. Two people were killed at the scene, a third died later in hospital, and the suspect is subsequently in custody.[3][4][5] The suspect was a 70-year-old Birmingham man named Robert Findlay Smith (born December 23, 1951),[6][2] a gun dealer.[7][8] On May 2, 2023, Smith pled guilty in the shooting and was sentenced to life without parole.[9][10][11]
Jane Pounds, 84, initially reported injured, died at a local hospital. Her family requested that her name be withheld, but it was made public by the press.[4][12]
Following the shooting, Alabama governor Kay Ivey issued a statement saying that the shooting is "shocking and tragic," adding that "this should never happen — in a church, in a store, in the city or anywhere."[13]
During a Sunday morning service on June 19, 2022, the church gathered to honor the members who were shot and killed during the shooting.[14]