ST. LOUIS — City leaders are working to encourage people who witness or have information about a murder to come forward through an increase in cash rewards.
The St. Louis Board of Aldermen Public Safety Committee voted unanimously Wednesday to approve Board Bill 114, also called the Justice for St. Louis Families Fund.
The bill would provide funding for a $10,000 cash reward for tips and information that lead to the arrest of a murder suspect in St. Louis. If the murder victim is a child under 17 years old, the reward would be $15,000.
The bill needs to clear two more votes before it goes to Mayor Lyda Krewson for approval. The final vote is scheduled for Nov. 6.
“I’m thankful to the members of the committee for advancing this important piece of legislation for our City," said Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed, who sponsored the bill. "It’s another tool in our toolbox to help with the violent crime issue in our City. We cannot continue to let murderers, especially child murderers, walk the streets of St. Louis. We know there are people out there that have information. The goal is to get justice for grieving families and break the cycle of violence in St. Louis.”
The $2,000,000 required to establish the fund will be transferred from the city’s emergency reserves account.
Tipsters may remain anonymous.
“Gun violence is our original health care crisis in the City. We cannot lose focus on fighting this crisis,” said Reed.
CrimeStoppers currently offers rewards of $5,000 for information that leads police to make an arrest in a murder case. CrimeStoppers is a nonprofit that runs on private donations. The CrimeStoppers tipline number is 866-371-8477.
If the Justice for St. Louis Families Fund is approved, CrimeStoppers will help administer the program specifically for the City of St. Louis and homicides that occur in the city, the spokesperson said.
If the bill is approved, the city plans to spread the word about the new rewards through an advertising campaign.
As of Oct. 13, there have been 212 homicides in St. Louis in 2020. At the same time last year, there were 160.