Settlement Reached In Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Murder Suspects, Brandon Miller

TUSCALOOSA, AL — A settlement has been reached in a wrongful death civil lawsuit filed by the family of slain Birmingham mother Jamea Harris against former Alabama basketball players Darius Miles and Brandon Miller, and capital murder suspect Michael Lynn Davis.

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According to court documents obtained by Patch on Friday, the matter was initially set to go to trial in June if a settlement agreement could not be reached. However, an agreement was approved in the form of a trust for an undisclosed amount to be established for Harris' son, who was five years old at the time of the fatal shooting in the early morning hours of Jan. 15, 2023.

Patch previously reported that the wrongful death lawsuit called for a judge to grant a jury trial to award damages to the victim's family in an amount exceeding $75,000.

After the settlement was reached, the civil lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice by U.S. District Court Judge Anna M. Manasco, with both sides covering their own court costs.

Decarla Raietta Heard served as the personal representative of the Estate of Jamea Jonae Harris, with Advocacy Trust, LLC, set to act as the trustee.

As Patch previously reported, Jamea Harris was shot and killed on Grace Street near The Strip as she sat in the front passenger seat of her Jeep, while her boyfriend Cedric Johnson was behind the wheel and her cousin was in the back seat.

Davis is scheduled to go to trial on May 5, while a trial date for Miles has not been set.

Miller, who is in his second season with the NBA's Charlotte Hornets, was never charged or considered a suspect by investigators.

"Brandon never touched the gun, was not involved in its exchange to Mr. Davis in any way, and never knew that illegal activity involving the gun would occur," Miller's attorney Jim Standridge said in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.

Davis is accused of using the handgun owned by Miles to kill Harris, with both men claiming that the gun was first discussed between them after Miles allegedly saw a gun passed to Cedric Johnson during a brief verbal altercation just off of The Strip just minutes before the first shot was fired.

Davis was shot twice during the fatal altercation by Cedric Johnson, who was never charged and has yet to testify in court, while also avoiding being served subpoenas by defense attorneys at every turn other than once in open court.

Johnson was also, at one time, a defendant in the recently dismissed wrongful death lawsuit, which is separate from the criminal proceedings against Miles and Davis.

Johnson was eventually dropped as a defendant in the lawsuit filed by his deceased girlfriend's family and little is known about how he will factor in to the upcoming murder trials.

Miles was a minor contributor on a Crimson Tide team that made the Sweet 16 in 2023 but wasn't on the active roster due to an injury and didn't dress for the 106-66 win over LSU in Coleman Coliseum just hours before the shooting.

Miles averaged 4.2 points and 2.3 rebounds a game off the bench for the Crimson Tide.

But his Alabama basketball career came to a swift end when Miles and Davis were charged with capital murder. He was kicked off the team by head coach Nate Oats in the hours after his arrest and both men have been held without bond in the Tuscaloosa County Jail since.

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