Shots From Bailiff Halts Armed Murderer’s Court Rampage During Sentencing Hearing
A court bailiff shot and critically wounded a convicted murderer Friday when the man pulled out a pistol at his sentencing hearing.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Jennifer Montgomery said a bailiff shot Bobby Joe McKay, 56, in the courtroom in the Jefferson County Courthouse about 10 a.m.
Court officials said the bailiff, Harry Faucett, had been on the job only a few months.
McKay had just been sentenced to 50 years in prison when he pulled the weapon and ignored orders to put it down. Witnesses said there were more than 50 people in the courtroom. No one else was injured.
McKay was taken to Carraway Methodist Medical Center with a bullet wound in the head. The hospital listed his condition as critical.
He was convicted Aug. 13 for the murder of janitor Wesley Lewis during a confrontation at a Birmingham business last May.
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