Suspects in livestreamed murder of Birmingham mother Asia Poole denied bail; lawyers claim self-defense

Three of four young suspects charged with murder in the fatal shooting at a Birmingham apartment complex last week, which was captured live on Facebook videos, were denied bail by a judge, deeming them too dangerous for release.

But the trio's lawyers argued that their clients fired in self-defense, claiming a family member of the slain mother, Asia Poole, fired first and that the barrage that followed – at least 168 shots from multiple guns – was a reaction, not an attack.

Aacoreyah Denae Woods, 20, Justin Jamond “June Bug” Hendrix, 20, Taylor “Paper Route Tay” McCloud, 22, and a 17-year-old man are charged with Poole's murder.

They are also charged with attempted murder in connection with the wounding of Poole's best friend, Damarion Rankins, who was shot in the hip.

Janiyah Hendrix, 19, who was arguing with Poole before the shooting, is charged with first-degree auto theft after she fled the chaotic crime scene in Poole County, according to authorities.

Janiyah Hendrix and Justin Hendrix are siblings and were taken into custody at their maternal grandparents' home. Their father was shot and killed in 2022 when he stopped at an ATM in Homewood on his way home from church.

McCloud was arrested during a stop by Mountain Brook Police, where an illegal substance was found in his vehicle.

Woods was taken to prison on Tuesday and the juvenile on Wednesday.

Poole, the mother of a young daughter, died of a gunshot wound to the back, according to testimony at an Aniah's Law bail hearing held Wednesday before Jefferson County District Judge Kechia Davis. The father of Poole's 4-year-old daughter died weeks before Poole's death.

When the hearing concluded, the judge said there was no combination of release conditions that would guarantee the suspects would appear in court again or protect the safety of the community or the surviving victim. She noted that all three suspects were out on bail for previous crimes.

“I think the community has an absolute right to feel safe and secure in their homes,” Davis said, ordering the trio to remain detained without bail.

There has not yet been a bail hearing for the fourth suspect, a 17-year-old youth.

The shooting occurred on August 20 at around 10 p.m. at the Monarch Ridge Apartments.

Poole's acquaintances reported that there was an ongoing argument between her and Janiyah Hendrix over a man.

The argument between Poole and Janiyah Hendrix began near Poole's vehicle in the parking lot. They were eventually separated, but the argument started again in the alleyway of the building where Poole lived.

The fight and subsequent shootout were captured on Facebook Live videos. Surveillance cameras – including cameras installed in every doorway of the large apartment complex – also captured some of the chaos that night and were secured by the Metro Area Crime Center.

Jefferson County Assistant District Attorneys Dianah Ellis and Tyerra Henderson are prosecuting the case.

Justin Hendrix was represented in court Wednesday by attorney Scott Boudreaux. Woods is represented by Darryl Bender and Luckie Milad, and McCloud is represented by Rolando Rankin.

Birmingham Homicide Detective John Finke was the only witness at the Aniah's Law hearing.

Finke testified that when he arrived at the crime scene in Monarch Ridge that night, there were “shell casings everywhere” and Poole was lying dead in her alleyway.

Finke said he first received the nicknames of those involved and was later able to identify them using their real names. With the help of witnesses and the surviving victim, he was able to identify the people seen in the videos.

Finke said Justin Hendrix was seen in the videos wearing a black hoodie and a black ski mask and was armed with two guns – a Draco and an AR-15 pistol.

McCloud was dressed all in black, he said, and was armed with a gun.

Woods wore denim shorts, a brown shirt and was armed with a Draco with an extended magazine. At one point, the detective said, she also wore a ski mask.

The video, Finke testified, shows that the 17-year-old suspect – who is seen shirtless in the videos – fired the first shot toward the alleyway as Janiyah Hendrix fled the scene in Poole's vehicle.

It also showed Woods, McCloud and Justin Hendrix firing their weapons. All four shooters, Finke said, fired their weapons toward the alleyway.

“They all shot in the direction in which the victim was killed,” Finke testified.

Justin Hendrix told investigators he was high and could barely remember what happened that night. “He said he heard gunshots, turned around and started shooting,” Finke said.

Finke said the videos did not show anyone firing from the passageway and that no cartridge cases were found there.

One of the Facebook Live videos came from a cellphone thrown into the alleyway as the shooting began and captured the barrage of gunfire that lasted for minutes.

The phone also showed Poole's brother desperately calling out: “Call the police. My sister is dead here.”

The defense claims that the audio recording clearly shows that the first shot was fired in the immediate vicinity of the cell phone and not from the parking lot.

“You can hear it clearly,” said lawyer Bender.

Finke disagreed.

“It seems to me that once (the 17-year-old) shoots, everyone starts shooting,” Finke said. “They shot and ran.”

Evidence technicians recovered evidence of at least four different firearms. Police also said at least two people returned fire after the four suspects fired.

The shooting also damaged several vehicles and residential units.

Investigators have not yet determined the caliber of the bullet that killed Poole, he said.

Under cross-examination, Finke testified that Poole's brother was also armed with a long gun.

Bender said his client Woods had a gun permit, tried to break up the fight and fired in self-defense.

“From what we're hearing, one shot was fired from the passageway and every subsequent shot was in response to that,” Bender said during closing arguments on the bond issue. “If that first shot hadn't been fired, no shots would have been fired.”

“A gun can be fired, but not a cartridge case,” Bender said, supporting his assumption that someone in the passageway fired first.

Rankin said his client McCloud also tried to break up the fight and only drew his gun after the first shot was fired.

“I think he ran away from the first shot,” Rankin said.

Boudreaux also argued for bail for Justin Hendrix.

“Four people are being charged with the same crime, which clearly shows that we don't know what happened,” he said. “When the results of the ballistics examination are available, the situation will be narrowed down enormously.”

Attorneys said murder is a bailable offense and the fact that Poole's killing was so high profile should not play a role in the judge's decision.

“This case is under a lot of pressure, it's like a baby killer,” Boudreaux said. “None of the four defendants can be guilty in this case.”

Judge Davis disagreed, saying that in fact all four people could be convicted of murder.

Prosecutor Ellis successfully argued that the suspects should be denied bail.

“The brutality of the attack is evident in the sheer volume of gunfire,” she said.

She was also aware of the great attention Poole's murder was attracting and felt it deserved prominent news coverage.

“Yes, the public has a great interest,” she said, “in not having their homes shot at.”