Update: Arrest in connection with East Lake motel shooting

From Tribune staff reports

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Birmingham police have arrested a suspect on a murder warrant in connection with a shooting that left a man dead at an East Lake motel last week, according to BPD Officer Truman Fitzgerald.

The suspect was identified as Noel Ashford, 44, of Hoover.

Ashford was arrested by the BPD's Crime Reduction Team on the day of the shooting.

On August 12, shortly after 9:42 a.m., officers responded to a report that a person had been shot at the Anchor Motel, located at 8420 1st Avenue North.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found an adult man lying in the parking lot, unconscious and suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.

The victim was identified as 45-year-old James Edward White of Birmingham.

Birmingham Fire and EMS transported White to UAB Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

According to BPD Sergeant LaQuitta Wade, the preliminary investigation indicated that a physical altercation occurred between the victim and the suspect in the motel parking lot, which led to the shooting.

A witness reportedly attempted life-saving measures before the BFRS arrived.

Ashford is being held without bail in the Jefferson County Jail.