ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis man was charged with first-degree murder in a September 2020 homicide in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood.
James Brown Jr., 24, was charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of 29-year-old Samuel Reece.
According to court documents, Reece was riding his bike on Sept. 27, 2020, when he passed a Kia Soul. He interacted with the occupants of the vehicle before he was fatally shot by two of the occupants. The vehicle fled the scene.
A witness was later interviewed by police and admitted to being one of the occupants in the vehicle. They identified both occupants involved in the shooting, one of them being Brown.
Brown admitted to driving the Kia Soul but told police he was not one of the two who shot Reece. Police said cartridges from two different guns were located at the scene.
The 24-year-old later admitted to the shooting, claiming he was trying to shoot at a car, court documents said.
Brown is also being investigated in a separate shooting that happened on Dec. 5, 2023.
Police said he got into an argument with the mother of his 1-year-old child in the 1400 block of Granville Place.
According to court documents, the mother tried to leave the residence while holding the child when Brown fired three shots in her direction. The victim told police she dropped to the ground and saw Brown approaching her, saying he was "going to kill her," documents said.
He is charged with first-degree domestic assault, armed criminal action, unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm and endangering the welfare of a child.
