ST. LOUIS — Friday night into early Saturday became an especially busy period for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. They were called to nine incidents of violent crime — one deadly shooting, at least eight people wounded by gunfire and three reported domestic assaults — in the span of under seven hours.
At one point, SLMPD reported there were 12 people shot, but after incident summaries came in, the final total was nine.
Around 4:30 a.m. Saturday, police were called to the 3700 block of Penrose St., where they found a man in a vacant lot, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Joel David Boyd, 41, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Two men are suspected. Homicide detectives are handling the investigation.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Homicide Division directly at 314-444-5371, or anyone with a tip who wants to remain anonymous and is interested in a reward can contact CrimeStoppers at 866-371-TIPS (8477).
Earlier in the evening, police responded to a shooting in the 3000 block of Miami St. and found a girl, 13, who had been shot in the leg; a man, 36, with a graze wound to his head; and another man, 28, with gunshot wounds to his buttocks. All three are in stable condition at local hospitals.
There was a double shooting in the 1000 block of Cole St., with a 24-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wound to his torso, and a man, 23, with a gunshot wound to his foot, who left the scene after being treated by EMS.
An early investigation suggested the victims were in front of a residence when a large fight broke out and shots were fired by an unknown suspect.
A 32-year-old woman, riding in a vehicle near Chouteau Avenue and Dillon Court, saw two vehicles with occupants exchanging gunfire. The woman suffered a gunshot to her face and hand, police reported. EMS transported her to a hospital, and she's in stable condition.
Then in the 1200 block of South 14th St., a woman was found to have a graze wound to her leg. She was uncooperative when questioned, saying only that she was in front of her home when she heard shots and felt pain. She refused medical care at the scene.
Perhaps more alarming were three alleged domestic assault incidents: on the 5800 block of Garesche Ave., a 66-year-old man suffering from facial cuts inflicted by a woman, 45; on the 900 block of Leonor K. Sullivan Blvd., a woman, 26, striking a man, 25, with the handle of a machete, cutting him on the hand, then fleeing the scene (she was taken into custody later, suspected to possess narcotics); and a man, 28, found with a stab wound to his arm and a woman, 20, in custody.
Another victim was thought to have a gunshot wound but had actually suffered blunt force trauma to the head. The victim is in stable condition.
There have been 65 homicides in St. Louis in 2021, a 23% increase over this time last year and a 31% increase over 2019 on this date.
