County leaders call for joint summit after downtown mass shooting

On Oct. 7, 2025, Montgomery County commissioners urged city and county leaders, law enforcement and school officials to meet within one week to begin sustained work addressing a deadly downtown shooting that officials said underscored a larger breakdown in community supports.

Vice Chair Moore Ziegler told the commission that the county must face the problem directly: “We gotta have an honest conversation,” he said, urging participation from the city, county and state to identify causes and responses.

The call matters because commissioners said the shooting reflects deeper social needs that cross jurisdictional lines — education, family supports and community investment — and because commissioners proposed an immediate, repeated working group to move beyond press statements and short-term responses.

Commissioner Justin (Commissioner) said the problem is rooted in deeper cultural issues and pressed for a concrete convening, saying, “there is a complete lack of respect for the dignity of human life.” He proposed that county and city elected leaders, the police chief, the sheriff, and the superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools meet within one week to start a coordinated response and then continue meeting for months.

Commissioner Justin outlined a phased, multi-stakeholder approach rather than a single short-term action: the initial group would include elected leaders and heads of law enforcement and education, then expand to faith leaders, educators, community members and business leaders for a sustained effort. He said the meeting should take place at City Hall, the county commission chambers or Montgomery Public Schools — whichever is most practical.

Commissioner Saiki (Commissioner) read an emailed statement from Eldrick Coleman, president of the Alabama Youth and College Division of the NAACP, that urged “unity, healing, and urgent action to address the crisis of gun violence” and said the organization “stands in solidarity with the victims, their families, and their entire Montgomery community.”

Sheriff Cunningham reminded the commission of an upcoming public prayer event and described current fairground security deployments as part of an immediate public-safety posture. He was among officials the commissioners invited to participate in the proposed working group.

No formal motion or vote to establish the summit was recorded during the meeting; commissioners framed the plan as a direction and public commitment to convene relevant leaders promptly. Several commissioners said any summit would be the start of ongoing work, not a one-time meeting.

Commissioners said they will follow up with the mayor, city council leadership, the police chief, sheriff and school superintendent to schedule the initial meeting and that the group should report back to the commission on timeline and near-term actions.