ST. LOUIS — Residents along Cass Avenue in north St. Louis woke up to find the dead body of a shooting victim in their neighborhood, some saying they called police the night before but no one responded.
A source familiar with the investigation told 5 On Your Side an officer responded about an hour and a half after receiving two automated calls from ShotSpotter and one 911 call from a resident reporting hearing shots fired in the area. However, the officer did not see the victim, who was later identified as 38-year-old Phillip Walters of St. Louis.
The call was one of about a dozen that were pending at shift change, the source said.
Here is the timeline the source gave:
- 10:37 p.m.: Automated call from the city’s ShotSpotter system showed shots fired near 1400 Chambers.
- 10:37 p.m.: Automated call from the city’s ShotSpotter system showed shots fired near 1500 N. 18th Street.
- 10:49 p.m." A resident called 911 from 1500 Hogan reporting hearing four shots fired, but not seeing anyone and did not leave a callback number for police to follow up.
- 12:16 a.m.: Officer is dispatched to the call.
- 12:19 a.m.: Officer arrives at the scene.
- 12:26 a.m.: Officer closes the call after not seeing anything in the area.
- 7:40 a.m.: Officers respond after a man is found deceased outside a home with gunshot wounds to his back and chest.
5 On Your Side spoke to the resident who called police, who did not want to be named for fear of retaliation.
“Last night when everybody should be asleep there was a barrage of gunfire and this is not new,” the resident said. “The police when they’re called, they very seldom come. They do not show up. They do not show up. If there is a shortage why is there only a shortage of police and policing on the north side?"
The resident said they did not go look out their window for fear of getting shot.
“When the police were called, they never showed up," the resident said. "We’re wondering, where are the people who are supposed to give leadership to this fine city?
"We’re looking for the Mayor, Tishaura Jones. When she wants to spend money on license plates and tags, spend money on more policing so we can feel safe. We don’t feel safe over here at all. Had they shown up it would have been different. We’re exhausted with calling the police. Where is Chief Tracy? Where is Congresswoman Cori Bush? Where is Steve Roberts the Senator? Where is Rasheen Aldridge? This is too much. Too much for us. We’re a community of homeowners, taxpayers, this doesn’t make sense to us," the resident said.
A spokesman for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said the department has 877 commissioned officers, which excludes police trainees.
That's hundreds fewer than the city's authorized strength.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department released a statement regarding the shooting and response:
"Around 7 a.m. on Tuesday, District 4 officers responded to a Person Down call in the 1500 block of Hogan. Officers arrived on scene and requested Homicide Detectives to respond.
"Detectives determined the victim, an adult man, had been shot. Around 10:45 p.m. on Monday, District 4 officers received a ShotSpotter Activation in the 1500 block of North 18th, in addition to a shots fired call in the in the 1500 block of Hogan. The caller reported hearing several gunshots but not seeing anything suspicious. The caller did not leave their name, call back number and did not want in-person contact with an officer.
"At the time of the shots fired calls, there were seven other calls in District 4 between 9:53 p.m. and 10:37 p.m. There was no information to suggest someone had been shot, which would’ve immediately elevated the call to a Priority 1. The shots fired calls remained a Priority 2. For context, during January 1, 2023-January 1, 2024, there were 14,578 ShotSpotter Activations.
"Around midnight, a District 4 officer responded to the area to investigate. An initial review of the officer’s bodycam reveals the District 4 officer searched by vehicle and also by foot, utilizing his flashlight. No evidence of a shooting or a victim was located during the initial search.
"Homicide Detectives believe the victim left the original shooting location on North 18th Street, before collapsing near a privacy fence of a residence on Hogan. The circumstances that lead up to the shooting remain under investigation."