The E.J. Bradford case ended in judgment for the city
The federal case over the 2018 police killing of E.J. Bradford Jr. at the Riverchase Galleria ended in a published appellate ruling for the city and the officer, with no settlement and no damages paid at any stage.
Where it stands
Settled
Hits residents
8/10
Years covered
2018–2025
Sources
3 linked
- $0
- Damages paid to the Bradford family at any stage
- 5 seconds
- Between the first gunshots and Officer Alexander’s shot, per the appellate opinion
- 6.5 years
- From the shooting to the final appellate mandate
As of 2025-05
As of 2025-04
As of 2025-05
What happened
On Thanksgiving night 2018, Hoover Officer David Alexander shot and killed Emantic “E.J.” Fitzgerald Bradford Jr. at the Riverchase Galleria. The Eleventh Circuit’s published opinion records that Alexander fired approximately five seconds after hearing the initial gunshots from an unrelated altercation, without issuing a verbal warning, “mistakenly believing he was going to shoot the two men who were near the railing.” The court described Bradford as “a Good Samaritan who was going toward the sound of gunshots and was legally authorized to carry his gun.” The Alabama Attorney General declined to charge Alexander in February 2019. Bradford’s mother, April Pipkins, sued in November 2019. The district court granted summary judgment for all defendants in February 2023, and the Eleventh Circuit affirmed on April 17, 2025, holding the use of force objectively reasonable under the Fourth Amendment and a verbal warning not feasible. The mandate issued May 16, 2025. No settlement was reached and no damages were paid.
Timeline
Officer David Alexander shot and killed Bradford at the Galleria about five seconds after the first gunshots from an unrelated dispute.
Eleventh Circuit published opinion, No. 23-10814 (media.ca11.uscourts.gov) ↗Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall concluded Alexander did not commit a crime under Alabama law.
Alabama Attorney General’s Office (alabamaag.gov) ↗April Pipkins filed suit against the city, Alexander, and the mall’s owner and operator in federal court.
CourtListener / RECAP docket 18352921 (courtlistener.com) ↗District court entered final judgment for all defendants.
CourtListener / RECAP (courtlistener.com) ↗Eleventh Circuit affirmed in a published opinion, holding the shooting was constitutionally reasonable.
Eleventh Circuit opinion, No. 23-10814 (media.ca11.uscourts.gov) ↗Mandate issued; no further docket activity followed.
CourtListener / RECAP (courtlistener.com) ↗
Who's involved
April Pipkins
Plaintiff; Bradford’s mother and representative of his estate
Officer David Alexander
Hoover police officer who fired the shot
Hoover Mall Ltd. and Brookfield Asset Management
Owner and operator of the Galleria; dismissed from the state-law claims
Judges Jordan, Newsom and Brasher
Eleventh Circuit panel
Steve Marshall
Alabama Attorney General; declined to charge
The other side
The Eleventh Circuit resolved the case in the city’s favor, holding that Officer Alexander’s use of deadly force was objectively reasonable under the Fourth Amendment and that a verbal warning was not feasible in the circumstances. The same opinion records that an expert for the plaintiff had called the failure to warn “unreasonable, tactically unsound, and contrary to generally accepted police practices.” No Hoover official is on record disputing the outcome.
Open questions
- Whether Officer Alexander’s employment status with Hoover PD has changed since the shooting is not documented in any source reviewed.
- Whether Hoover PD changed its use-of-force or warning policy after the shooting is not documented.
- Whether a petition for certiorari was filed after the May 2025 mandate could not be confirmed.
Sources (3)
- 1Pipkins v. City of Hoover, published opinion, No. 23-10814U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit · Apr 17, 2025 · media.ca11.uscourts.gov
- 2Pipkins v. City of Hoover, Alabama, docket 18352921CourtListener / Free Law Project · Jul 29, 2026 · courtlistener.com
- 3Attorney General Marshall releases report on officer-involved shooting death of Emantic Bradford Jr.Alabama Attorney General’s Office · Feb 5, 2019 · alabamaag.gov
Last checked July 29, 2026