Teen shot in STL neighborhood targeted by anti-violence efforts
ST. LOUIS – St. Louis Metropolitan Police draped crime tape around the street signs marking the intersection of Kennerly and Hamilton Avenues Tuesday afternoon.
A victim was shot and rushed to a hospital around 3 p.m. Investigators estimated the victim to be 16 years old. He was said to be conscious and breathing.
The gunfire came in the Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood. The area has been a focus of efforts to reduce violence.
Members of Show Me Peace, an organization that is part of Mission: St. Louis, went door to door in the neighborhood Tuesday. Members are on a mission to mediate disputes and provide resources to keep arguments from turning violent.
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“We don’t want it to escalate to where there’s a shooting,” Reginald Beasley, a violence interrupter with Show Me Peace, said.
Beasley said he has a background that gives him a credible voice in a neighborhood where crime has been a concern.
Show Me Peace members wear green shirts in the neighborhood and engage with neighbors in an effort to identify potential situations where an intervention could prevent violence.
“We need to find out what’s the solution,” Charles Hatley, site manager for Show Me Peace in the Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood, said.
Some longtime residents believe it will take a herculean effort to curb violence. Hatley agrees.
“We need everyone to be involved if we’re going to change this condition in our community,” he said.
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