Phenix City, Ala. — Authorities arrested and charged 51-year-old Willie James Davis Jr. in connection with what the Phenix City Police Department has described as the first homicide of 2026. Davis was taken into custody in the early hours of February 16 after police responded to a shooting on 17th Avenue South the night before.
Investigators say officers arrived at the scene just before midnight on February 15 and found 52-year-old Contina Robinson suffering from gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at about 11:49 p.m. that night. Officers quickly identified and located Davis near the scene and brought him in without incident. He now faces a murder charge and is being held without bond.
Police have not released a motive for the shooting and say the investigation is ongoing. Detectives with the Phenix City Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division are working with the Russell County Coroner’s Office to piece together what led up to the fatal encounter. Robinson’s body has been sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences in Montgomery for an autopsy.
Residents on the block say they heard sirens and saw a heavy law-enforcement presence that Sunday night. Officers spent hours at the scene, talking with neighbors and gathering evidence. One local said the arrest of Davis happened swiftly, and it seemed to take some of the tension out of an otherwise dark night.
Davis’s background, beyond his age and name, has not been made public. Court records will be updated as he makes his first appearances in Russell County court. For now, police continue to follow leads and have asked anyone with information to contact investigators.
The community response has been a mix of concern and curiosity, with many residents trying to understand how a life ended and another was compelled to act in such a way. There is a palpable sense of unease in this usually quiet part of Phenix City, as friends and family of both Robinson and Davis await answers.
For those watching the case unfold, the focus remains on the facts — what happened, why it happened and how justice will be served. Authorities stress that charges are allegations until proven in court, but the arrest of Davis is a significant step in the city’s response to the tragedy.
