ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A rash of violence in north St. Louis County has one community working to take back the streets.
It comes as investigators are working to solve three homicide cases that happened in less than three days. The surge in violence finds neighbors calling for change and collaboration.
A public park is supposed to be a place of peace and recreation, not crime.
"[It] caused concern with the neighbors,” Rick Allen with the Jeske Park Neighborhood Association in Ferguson said.
He's referring to an incident at Jeske Park near Florissant Avenue. On Thursday, police confirmed that just a few weeks ago, a woman in her 70s was walking when three masked teens pointed a gun at her, demanding her house and car keys.
“[We’re] dealing with what we see as an escalating crime problem,” Allen said.
Now, the association is calling on St. Louis County Councilwoman Rita Days' presence at their meeting next week.
"To see how best residents in our neighborhood can interface with the county and utilize county resources,” Allen said.
It comes as investigators are battling a series of recent crimes. Someone was shot in the head Christmas night in Ferguson.
Three men were shot and injured and another was killed outside a Florissant shopping center on Christmas Eve. In the new year, there were two homicides in Moline Acres and another in Dellwood.
"I'm very concerned about this. These are neighborhoods where we have lots of children,” Days said.
She points to crime-fighting tools across the county. She said when crime is up, leaders need to look at keeping or expanding these tools, not reducing or eliminating them.
"The administration cut the ShotSpotter program, but the council restored it because, according to police officers, it’s been very instrumental in helping us catch some of the criminals out there,” she added.
Now she's asking neighbors and police in multiple localities to unite, instead of remaining silent.
"There are some hotspots in each of the areas. What works with one area, may work with the other, but we don't know if we don't sit down and have these conversations with each police department,” she said.
The next association meeting will be held on Thursday, Jan. 11 at the First Baptist Church on North Florissant at 7 p.m.