A state judge in Alabama is in critical condition after his 36-year-old son allegedly shot him over the weekend in what authorities have described as a domestic dispute. Khalfani A. Hardwick was taken into custody on Saturday and charged with one count of first-degree domestic violence assault and one count of being a forbidden person in possession of a firearm in the attack on Judge Johnny Hardwick, authorities announced.
According to a news release from the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, deputies at about 1 p.m. on Saturday responded to a 911 call at the residence of Johnny Hardwick, the presiding judge of Montgomery County’s Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in regards to a possible domestic violence incident.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they located Judge Hardwick, who had been “assaulted, shot, and seriously injured by his son.”
Following the alleged assault, Khalfani Hardwick attempted to flee the area in his truck, which was later found abandoned on the side of Trotman Road in Montgomery, police said. During a search of the surrounding area, authorities located Khalfani Hardwick, who was on foot along U.S. Highway 231 and took him into custody without incident.
Authorities said that Judge Hardwick was transported to a hospital after suffering “serious” injuries in the alleged assault. The judge was later said to have undergone emergency surgery and was listed in critical condition, per a report from NBC News.
Police have not yet released details about what may have led to the shooting.
Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed said on Saturday evening that he and his wife wished Judge Hardwick a speedy recovery from his injuries.
“Tamika and I are saddened by the news that Judge Johnny Hardwick has been shot,” Reed said in a statement to Dothan, Alabama ABC affiliate WDHN. “He has honorably served our community on the Circuit Court for decades, helping spearhead numerous reforms to make the court system more equitable and fair.
Most recently, he worked to eliminate bond requirements for more non-violent offenses. Away from the bench he was a champion for the area’s youth, one of the founders of 100 Black Men of Greater Montgomery. We are praying for his recovery.”
Saturday’s incident was not Khalfani Hardwick’s first run-in with the law.
According to a report from AL.com, Khalfani Hardwick in 2014 was arrested and charged with attempted murder for shooting a family friend in the back of the head during an argument.
After initially failing to appear at the start of his own trial, Khalfani Hardwick reached a deal with prosecutors and in 2017 pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree assault over the attack and received a three-year suspended sentence and was put on supervised probation. His father was a circuit court judge at the time.
Khalfani Hardwick is currently being held in the Montgomery County Detention Center in lieu of $15,000 bond. It is not clear when he will appear in court again.
