By By Sheila Blackmon/The Meridian Star
Dec. 15, 2000
DEKALB Kemper County sheriff's deputies questioned a 14-year-old youth Thursday in connection with a Wednesday night shooting, the second in Kemper County in as many days. The victim, Robert Earl Byrd, was in stable condition at press time last night.
The shooting occurred in the Piney Woods community about five miles north of Scooba on Old Highway 45, Tisdale said. Both men are from Scooba. Tisdale said he does not know Byrd's age but he is not a juvenile.
Byrd was shot three times in the leg with a .38-caliber handgun, Tisdale said.
He said it is possible the victim was found because the shooter told someone about the shooting. Deputies found the weapon near the scene. Tisdale said he doesn't think there were any witnesses. He said he does not suspect drugs or alcohol to have been involved.
Byrd was transported to Noxubee General Hospital in Macon and was then transported to a Columbus hospital, Tisdale said.
The 14-year-old juvenile was brought in for questioning around 11 a.m. Thursday. If he is arrested, he will be charged as an adult, Tisdale said.
Meanwhile, Johnny Johnson, who was shot three times with a .22 caliber handgun late Tuesday afternoon in the Preston community about 15 miles from Piney Woods is in serious but stable condition in the intensive care unit at Rush Foundation Hospital in Meridian, Tisdale said.
Sheila Blackmon is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail her at sblackmon@themeridianstar.com.