One dead after being gunned down in bar restroom
A Laurel man is being held on $2 million bond after being accused of shooting two men — one fatally — inside the restroom of a local bar and grill just before midnight Saturday.
Clifton McGruder, 24, was charged with one count of murder and attempted murder after being charged in the shooting death of Damarius A. Cooley and the shooting of Jermaine Brinner.
McGruder made his initial appearance in Laurel Municipal Court on Monday, where Judge Kyle Robertson set the suspect’s bond at
$1 million on each count. The suspect’s mother stood by his side as he stood before the judge, then looked up and let out a big sigh when he heard the bond amount. His family plans to hire an attorney to represent him, he said.
Laurel police were called to the report of the shooting at Premier Sports Bar & Grill on Ellisville Boulevard at 11:46 p.m. after a security guard heard “three or four shots” inside the restroom then saw McGruder run out, trying to put a handgun in his waistband, according to the affidavit read by Robertson.
Other security personnel stopped McGruder outside and put him in handcuffs, but he reportedly ran and was caught in a nearby wooded area a short time later by Laurel police and deputies from the Jones County Sheriff’s Department.
Both victims were still alive in the restroom — one with a shot to the head, one with a shot to the neck — and a nurse who was a patron at the establishment tended to them while awaiting an ambulance.
Cooley was transported to Forrest General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later. Brinner was transported to South Central Regional Medical Center, where he was reportedly in stable condition.
It wasn’t known what led to the shooting.
“Our condolences go out to the families of the victims, especially the one who was deceased,” LPD Chief Tommy Cox said.
Before setting bond, the judge asked McGruder about his criminal history. He was charged with domestic assault for beating a woman and burning her wig in December, Robertson said. McGruder pleaded not guilty to that. He told the judge that past charges for possession of a stolen firearm and tampering with physical evidence had been dismissed. Robertson said he would check that with the Jones County District Attorney’s Office.
Sgt. Mitch Blakeney is the lead investigator in the case. Anyone with information about the shootings or any other criminal activity is asked to call the LPD at 601-399-4440 or Crime Stoppers at 601-428-STOP (7867).
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