Selma man shot and killed in Ward 7, where Stop the Gun Violence Rally is set for April 30

Less than three weeks before the annual Stop the Gun Violence Rally in Selma’s Ward 7, Selma suffered its fifth murder of 2022 and it is in Ward 7.

Selma Police Chief Kenta Fulford said the shooting happened around 12:30 p.m. Monday near the intersection of First Avenue and Kaiser Street. The victim was identified as Anthony Hays, 21, of Selma. Fulford said he was shot multiple times.

Fulford said the police do not have a suspect yet, but they are getting multiple calls “and we are looking into all leads, because we want to take care of this case as quickly as we can. The detective division is out canvasing the neighborhood to see if anyone saw anything.”

“It is very sad and unfortunate that people can’t disagree without resulting to violence,” Fulford said, “When I was growing up, we had fights, but it ended there. Now these kids go get weapons and not only is the victim’s family effected because they lost a loved one, but the suspect’s family is affected, especially if they have children, because now the suspect is in jail. 

Councilwoman Jannie Thomas, who represents Ward 7, reacted to the shooting. “I am so sorry to hear this and so sorry to have this violence in Ward 7; I feel hurt. I’ve been dealing with this for many years, standing up for no gun violence in Ward 7. I’ve seen too many lives taken by gun violence. I just want to say we as a community have had enough of murder in our ward and we are going to stand for the end of gun violence in our community.”

Thomas sponsors the annual Stop the Gun Violence Rally in Ward 7. This year’s rally is April 30 at noon on the block across the street from Selma University. She is inviting all the council members to come to the rally and show support. She is also asking ministers from local churches to attend. Thomas also asks families that have lost a loved one to gun violence to be there. The public is also invited.