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Couple shot – Man dies, woman critical

Kennedy

An Atmore man was killed and his female companion was critically wounded early Monday when a gun-wielding bandit forced his way into the man’s Broad Street home and opened fire on the two as they lay in bed.

The home invasion took place around 3 a.m. when, according to police, the unknown intruder apparently kicked in the front door to the home, raced to the bedroom and began demanding money.

Police officers arrived at the crime scene at 3:16 a.m. and immediately noticed damage to the front door. They entered the residence and found the homeowner, 56-year-old Robert Kennedy, and a Flomaton woman, 45-year-old Joi McClammy, lying in a blood-soaked bed with gunshot wounds.

According to police reports, Kennedy was taken by Lifeflight helicopter to University of South Alabama Medical Center in Mobile, where he later died from his injuries. McClammy was taken by ambulance to Atmore Community Hospital. She reportedly received preliminary treatment at ACH before being transferred to the Mobile hospital, where she reportedly remains in critical condition.

“The woman is still alive, but she’s in bad shape,” Brooks said Monday.

The police chief did not disclose the number of wounds inflicted on the victims, nor did he specify what type of weapon was used during the home invasion.

Flashing red and blue lights lit up the predawn sky as police cordoned off both ends of the city street, a relatively short connector that runs between Martin Luther King Drive and Carver Avenue, and searched for clues.

Curious neighbors stood in yards, on porches and in the street to watch as police and paramedics went in and out of the house and around its perimeter.

“I didn’t hear any shots, it was all the lights that woke me up,” said a woman who identified herself only as Margaret and said she lived nearby. “I didn’t know Mr. Kennedy too good, but he seemed nice. I didn’t know the woman at all, but I had seen her at the house a bunch. This is just terrible.”

The murder was the second in the city in a span of just over three days. Shawn Oneil Quarles, 31, of Camden was gunned down Thursday night (August 3) on Ann Street as he rode his bicycle to a convenience store to buy cigarettes.

Police have not announced an arrest in either homicide, and both investigations are ongoing. Anyone with information about either crime is urged to contact the Atmore Police Department at 251-368-9141.