[TideRoller]

From the Breaking News Section of the Birmingham News:

Sharpe Shot

"Ex-Parker, MSU basketball player injured in shooting
A former Parker High School standout and Mississippi State basketball player was shot in Birmingham today.

Police found Walter Sharpe, 19, sitting on a curb outside the gates at Arlington Antebellum Home & Gardens on Cotton Avenue just after 1 p.m. with a gunshot wound in the lower left abdomen. Sharpe was sitting up and talking to police, after he initially denied he’d been shot.

Authorities said that while his injuries didn’t appear life threatening, the nature of his wound — a small caliber bullet still inside him — could quickly change.

Sharpe, a college sophomore, was kicked off the Mississippi State roster this season after a series of suspensions for team rule violations which included missed practices and classes, repeated tardiness and a missed team flight to a game in California.

The shooting is under investigation. Sharpe told police he was in Loveman Village public housing community when he heard gunfire and started to run. He said he ran as far as he could, which was more than a half mile, before he stopped and police found him.

Officers who were told to be on the lookout for a gunshot victim saw and questioned him. He was holding his left arm over the wound, and had it covered with a bloody towel.

When paramedics arrived, Sharpe tried to stand up and said, “I’m OK.” Paramedics said, “No you’re not,” and ordered him to sit back down until the ambulance arrived. He was taken to UAB Hospital."

Didn't we have a UAB fan on this site actually proclaiming Walter Sharpe as a positive addition to UAB? Walter will be lucky to be alive in a few years...