Travis Eugene Posey Sentenced to Life in Prison for Arkansas Grocery Store Shooting That Killed 4 and Injured 11
Travis Eugene Posey Sentenced to Life in Prison for Arkansas Grocery Store Shooting That Killed 4 and Injured 11
Travis Eugene Posey was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the deadly mass shooting at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, Arkansas, last summer. The 43-year-old was also handed 220 additional years for 11 counts of attempted capital murder, marking one of the most severe sentences ever imposed in the state for a single incident.
The sentencing took place on Monday before Judge Spencer Singleton, who heard emotional testimony from the families of the victims. Among those who spoke was Hanna Sturgis, whose father, Roy Sturgis, was one of the four people killed in the attack. 'You don't deserve to be part of our story,' she told the court, as reported by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Posey, who did not speak during the hearing, has been in custody without bond since the shooting. He had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges, but in early August, he entered a guilty plea to four counts of capital murder and 11 counts of attempted capital murder.
Authorities have not identified a clear motive for the attack, and Posey has no known connection to any of the victims. The four victims were identified as Shirley Taylor, 62; Callie Weems, 23; Roy Sturgis, 50; and Ellen Shrum, 81. Eleven others were injured during the shooting.
During the incident, Posey was armed with a 12-gauge shotgun, a pistol, and a bandolier of extra shotgun rounds. He fired the weapon repeatedly in the parking lot before entering the store and opening fire indiscriminately at customers and employees, according to police.
The shooting led to the temporary closure of the only grocery store in Fordyce, a small town with a population of about 3,200. Local food distribution sites had to be set up to meet the community's needs, but the store reopened 11 days after the tragedy.
Posey, who resides in the nearby town of New Edinburg, was also the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by a surviving victim. The lawsuit seeks damages for medical care and lost income, but the court has yet to rule on the request for a default judgment against him.
The Arkansas shooting is part of a disturbing trend of mass shootings at grocery stores in recent years. Similar tragedies occurred in 2022 when a white supremacist killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket and in 2021 when a shooter killed 10 people at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado.
As the community continues to heal, the sentencing of Posey sends a clear message that such acts of violence will not be tolerated and will face the harshest legal consequences.
