Civil rights activist charged with attempted murder after attack of mayoral candidate
Quintez Brown's attorney reportedly plans to have him evaluated as soon as possible and sought the court's recognition of his mental state.
Kentucky activist Quintez Brown, who is a candidate for the Louisville Metro Council, has been charged with attempted murder after he allegedly fired multiple rounds at the headquarters of Craig Greenberg, a mayoral candidate.
The shooting happened on Monday and, according to The Louisville Courier-Journal, Brown, 21, was identified by witnesses and apprehended less than a half-mile from Greenberg’s campaign headquarters carrying a loaded 9mm magazine in his pocket. He was also arrested in possession of a handgun, a case and additional magazines.
He has been charged with attempted murder and four counts of wanton endangerment. At his arraignment Tuesday, Brown pled not guilty. The independent candidate’s bond was set at $100,000.
Greenberg told ABC News that he was “shaken but safe” after being at his campaign office early Monday with four colleagues when a man, later identified as Brown, came to the doorway with a gun. “When we greeted him, he pulled out a gun, aimed directly at me and began shooting,” Greenberg said.
One immediately shut the door, and they barricaded it. “Despite one bullet coming so close that it grazed my sweater and my shirt,” according to the Democratic mayoral hopeful, “no one was physically harmed.”
Police are working to uncover Brown’s motive in the shooting. He is suspected of having acted alone.
The 21-year-old gained local notoriety after being active in protests in Louisville following the police killing of Breonna Taylor in March 2020. The Courier-Journal — for which Brown interned in 2019 and 2020 and penned occasional opinion pieces — says he is the founder of From Fields to Arena, a group committed to providing political education and violence prevention training to youths engaged in hip-hop and athletics.
Brown, a senior at the University of Louisville, was reported missing last summer by his family after he disappeared for two weeks. His lawyer, Rob Eggert, reportedly plans to have Brown evaluated as soon as possible and sought the court’s recognition of his client’s mental state.
In a statement after he was found — reportedly on a Brooklyn park bench — his family said: “We are asking for privacy and would appreciate everyone’s patience and support while we tend to the most immediate need, which is Quintez’s physical, mental and spiritual needs.”
After Monday’s shooting, Greenberg, who is one of eight Democratic candidates for mayor of Louisville, said, “Too many Louisville families have experienced the trauma of gun violence. Too many in Louisville were not as blessed as my team and I were today to survive.”
“Clearly, much more work needs to be done to end this senseless gun violence,” he said, “and make Louisville a safer place for everyone.”
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