‘I can’t get justice with them out here on the street’: Greene County gun violence survivor wants closure

TUSCALOOSA, Ala ( WIAT ) – A Greene County man who spent three months fighting for his life in a hospital bed after being shot nearly two years ago is hoping for closure.

"I can't get justice with them out here on the street," Jerry Edwards said.

On Jan. 29, 2023, Edwards and his cousin, Korizon Washington, were enjoying a night out at the A's in the Hold – a nightclub in Eutaw.

However, a night that started as a work celebration turned into a night that Edwards will always remember.

"Not a day goes bye [that] I don't think about it and replay it," Edwards said.

Washington and three others were involved in a verbal argument outside of the nightclub. Edwards tried to diffuse the situation, but things took a fatal turn as Edwards walked with one individual to their car, hoping they'd just drive away.

"He reached over, he grabbed his gun and pointed it and me," Edwards said.

Edwards tried to rationalize with the gunman.

"I said, 'Man, please do not shoot me,'" Edwards said.

He pleaded over and over, but within a matter of seconds his life – and his cousin's — changed right before his eyes.

"It was a dark moment when I got shot," Edwards said.

He was struck by a bullet in the back. As Edwards fell to the ground, more gun shots rang out, and he watched as another bullet struck Washington. Washington was taken to the hospital where he later died.

Edwards will now spend the rest of his life confined to a wheelchair, serving as a constant reminder for all that he lost on a Sunday night in January 2023.

"I can't stand up and run," Edwards said. "What hurts me the most is the ones that did it are still out, living and doing everything with his kids that I can't do – that I normally could do."

Derrick Mobley was indicted for the murder of Washington and attempted murder of Edwards, according to court documents. Mobley posted a $150,000 bail in March 2023.

However, Edwards claimed there are more people responsible for leaving him paralyzed and for the death of his cousin, and he can't avoid them.

"I go to my convenience store, [and] they are a car length in front of me," Edwards said.

Edwards can't fathom how Mobley could make bail, and he believes others are getting away with murder.

"I know you're out here. I know you're the one that shot me and I'm not going to stop – I'm not," Edwards said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigations took over this case from the Greene County Sherriff's office.