AL - Two tellers killed, 2 injured in Bessemer bank robbery, 14 May 2007

That pregnant teller should count for two counts of murder. Just horrible.
I am in Alabama, about 90 min. from Bessemer, so this makes me extra-sick.:banghead: :banghead: :banghead:
 
This is awful. This was my hometown. I was raised less than a mile from this bank. I read news stories about it earlier today but I didn't realize which bank in Bessemer that it was. I just wish I had the names of all the people hurt in this thing. I'm very worried now. I don't live near Bessemer now, but I have a ton of friends and family that live there. Oh man.

I just called my sister who lives in the area. My mom was supposed to be at that bank this morning! Something happened where she didn't go, Thank the Lord! I have to call my mom now.
 
aww thats so sad :( I wonder what kind of shape the robber is in?

And man hearing this sure does make me want to never go inside a bank again! I always feel uneasy walking to/from the bank as it is!
 
This is awful. This was my hometown. I was raised less than a mile from this bank. I read news stories about it earlier today but I didn't realize which bank in Bessemer that it was. I just wish I had the names of all the people hurt in this thing. I'm very worried now. I don't live near Bessemer now, but I have a ton of friends and family that live there. Oh man.

I just called my sister who lives in the area. My mom was supposed to be at that bank this morning! Something happened where she didn't go, Thank the Lord! I have to call my mom now.

SG, let us know if you find out any other info. Praying for everyone in Bessemer, here in Auburn/Opelika.
 
Though I'm an overnight pro gun kind of guy, I still think that locations like, banks, sporting events, large stores, etc should have metal detectors at the door. Though it helps if your average store employee scrutinizes an alarm detected. I walked into the local drug store after coming from the gun range with my snub-nosed 38 in my pocket. I had a bag full of perscription drugs in the other hand. I set the alarm off and the girl just looked up and said, "I see your perscription drugs. That must be it". A lot of good that did...
 
SG, let us know if you find out any other info. Praying for everyone in Bessemer, here in Auburn/Opelika.

Thanks. I just talked to my mom. She was actually at the hospital across the street at the time of the robbery. You can see the top of the hospital in the picture in the link that Melly posted. Anyway she said that they didn't bring those injured into that hospital but airlifted them to Birmingham. That means the injuries are pretty bad. We still don't know if we know anybody involved or not. There is supposed to be a press conference tonight at 5:00 central time, so I hope to find out more then.
 
I just can't get over that the guy walked in and just started shooting... it makes no sense! I am a Wachovia employee, though I don't work in a branch, and this just makes me so sad for my co-workers and their families. :(
 
We have a bunch of relatives in that area. I wonder who the gunman was. There is no info about him. The article said he was shot. I'm assuming he survived.
 
Saying prayers for all touched by this terrible event in Bessemer. Yes, this is so very horrible. My dad is a retired regional auditor for Wachovia, worked 38 years for Wachovia. I'm thankful he's out of the 'ratrace' now! And, sillygoose, I am so thankful your mom is ok! She definately had a guardian angel watching over her. God's comfort for all involved there!

 
Thanks. I just talked to my mom. She was actually at the hospital across the street at the time of the robbery. You can see the top of the hospital in the picture in the link that Melly posted. Anyway she said that they didn't bring those injured into that hospital but airlifted them to Birmingham. That means the injuries are pretty bad. We still don't know if we know anybody involved or not. There is supposed to be a press conference tonight at 5:00 central time, so I hope to find out more then.

Keep us posted, so glad your mom is safe!! I'm about to watch our 6 pm news out of Montgomery and see what they have to say.
 
I just can't get over that the guy walked in and just started shooting... it makes no sense! I am a Wachovia employee, though I don't work in a branch, and this just makes me so sad for my co-workers and their families. :(

I sent this story to a friend of mine in Ohio who has a criminal justice background and he said the guy was out to kill, not steal money, and it may end up being a personal vendetta against the bank, or against one of the tellers, more than a robbery attempt.
 
I sent this story to a friend of mine in Ohio who has a criminal justice background and he said the guy was out to kill, not steal money, and it may end up being a personal vendetta against the bank, or against one of the tellers, more than a robbery attempt.
yeah, that was my thought as well...
 
sillygoose, so glad your mom is okay

It does sound like he was aiming to kill people not rob the place. I hope the pregnant mom wasn't his intended target. (not sure why it matters...but it makes me sad for some reason).

prayers for the victims and their families. What a horrible thing.:(
 
Here are more details, including the names of the victim and bank robber:

Bessemer bank robber identified as Birmingham man

Posted by Birningham News staff May 14, 2007 5:53 PM

medium_William%20Merriweather%20Jr.%201.jpg

Authorities this evening announced a Birmingham man, William Merriweather Jr., 30, has been charged with capital murder in the slaying this morning of two women banker workers in Bessemer.
The two women who were shot to death inside a Wachovia branch bank during the holdup have been identified as Sheila McWaine and Eva Hudson.
Two other people were wounded, when a gunman entered the bank shortly after it opened and unleashed a barrage of gunfire. The robber, now identified as Merriweather, briefly took the bank manager hostage. The robber was shot by lawmen when he tripped on the curb outside the bank. He was treated for a wound to the groin.


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Here's some more information. The teller was not pregnant after all, not that it makes things any better.

Man now facing two capital murder charges in bank slayings

Posted by [URL="http://blog.al.com/spotnews/about.html"]rsims[/URL] May 15, 2007 3:03 PM

Bank robbery suspect William Merriweather Jr. was charged today with two counts of capital murder in connection with Monday's fatal shooting at Wachovia Bank in Bessemer, Assistant District Attorney Ted Mills said.
Authorities earlier said he was facing three capital murder charges but authorities recalled one of the warrants. It was initially thought that one of the victims was pregnant, but an autopsy performed today revealed that was not the case.
 
Mental competency report delays federal trial for man in 2007 fatal Bessemer bank robbery - March 2015

The federal trial of a man who faces a possible death sentence if convicted in the 2007 slayings of two Bessemer bank tellers and the wounding of two others has been delayed again after a government expert found the man is not competent to stand trial.

U.S. District Court Judge David Proctor, in an order issued Friday afternoon, indefinitely delayed the trial of William Merriweather Jr. The trial had been slated to begin April 20.

The judge ordered Merriweather to be taken to a federal mental health facility for a period of not more than four months to determine "whether there is a substantial probability that in the foreseeable future he will attain the capacity to permit the trial to proceed."

Merriweather is charged in the May 14, 2007 bank robbery and deaths of Eva Lovelady Hudson and Sheila McWaine Prevo, and with the wounding of Anita Siler Gordon, Latoya Shaniece Freeman, all tellers at a Wachovia Bank branch in Bessemer.

Merriweather faces one count of killing during the commission of a bank robbery and two counts of use of a firearm during a crime of violence. If convicted he could face the death penalty.

Merriweather's trial has been reset multiple times as attorneys have argued the past eight years that Merriweather is schizophrenic and is incompetent to stand trial.

Survivors of 2007 bank robbery still awaiting justice - May 2016

On Friday, Gordon and Freeman said the nine year wait for justice is frustrating and painful.

They say they want Merriweather to be held accountable to bring closure for the families of Prevo and Hudson.

Both Merriweather's attorney and the United States Attorney's office would not comment on the case Friday.

Merriweather faces the death penalty and is currently being held in a federal medical facility in Ayer, Massachusetts.
 
Tiny drug sheets posing big headache for jails, prisons
Police said they broke up a highly coordinated effort of smuggling the drug Suboxone into the Porter County Jail in the form of tiny sublingual sheets that were sold for up to $100each among inmates.

The crackdown, which came as a result of word from a confidential informant, has resulted in three arrests.


One of those charged, William Merriweather Jr., 46, of South Bend, is scheduled to stand trial this week before Porter Superior Court Judge Bill Alexa on a felony count of dealing a controlled substance.
 
Bessemer bank robber who killed two, injured two, sentenced to life in prison

In a series of hearings today, U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor found Merriweather, 41, competent to stand trial, then accepted his guilty pleas and sentenced him to prison for the rest of his life.

“The victims of Merriweather’s brutal crime and the families of the victims who he killed have endured a long wait for him to be convicted and punished,” stated U.S. Attorney Robert O. Posey in a press release. “Today that wait ends, and Merriweather will never again walk free.”

“Merriweather’s utter disregard for human life is beyond comprehension,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp in the same press release from the U.S. Department of Justice. “I applaud the sentence handed down today, as Merriweather will now spend the rest of his life behind bars as a consequence for his heartless actions.”

Bank robber in 2007 Bessemer massacre gets life without parole, victim calls him 'cruel, evil'

"My life changed dramatically," Freeman said. "William Merriweather dragged me by my hair as if I was an animal. I was forced to lay in my own blood not knowing if I would live or die."

She said she suffers from survivors guilt, anger, and depression. "I have no sympathy, no anything for William Merriweather... For 10 years I've waited for this very moment. You are a cruel and evil person. You had no regard for human life."

"Mr. Merriweather... I've listened to you, I've given you hearing after hearing...please do not mistake my professional interaction with you as an acceptance of what you've done," Judge Proctor said.

He called Merriweather's actions "malicious, cold-blooded, evil, despicable, and hideous."

"To say that you should be ashamed is an understatement," Proctor said. "I wish this case had not taken so long-- too long."

"Is this justice for me, no!," said Gordon, one of the surviving victims. "Merriweather has been found competent previously, [and] we were ready to go to court," she said. "Some unforeseen craziness happened on our end so here we are again... It's been 10 years."

"To come with this offer 10 years later is a big disappointment," Gordon said. "We could've had this nightmare over years ago, so justice--no. Closure, maybe."
 

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