A south city neighborhood is coming to together to put an end to celebratory gunfire on New Year's Eve.
Last year, people in the Shaw neighborhood watched surveillance video posted on YouTube from someone's home capturing rapid gunfire in the first 10 minutes of 2018.
It's an issue police have dealt with for years. They say the alarming trend can be harmful and deadly.
"We don't want any celebratory gunfire," Gail Keelin, who lives in the Shaw neighborhood said.
It's been three years since she moved into her home in Shaw.
"The neighborhood is beautiful. It's all historical homes. It's a very good sense of community," she said.
In her time on her block, she has heard about violent crimes and gunfire in her neighborhood, but she said she never felt unsafe.
"I walk my dogs every day. We're in the park every day. I have no major safety concerns," she said.
However, the disturbing video saw last New Year's Eve got her attention.
"The amount of gunfire we heard last New Year's Eve was odd," she said.
It's why she decided to get involved with the Shaw neighborhood ownership to model. It's a group of ordinary people led by Dan Powell coming together to take back their community.
"We knew that this would allow us to focus on the safety end of things," he said.
Over the weekend, the group of volunteers left flyers on the doors of their neighbors reminding them to celebrate the holiday safely. The flyers included phone numbers to police.
"It's about reducing the ripple effect of crime so it's crime prevention, but also strategies and building relationships," Shaw resident Kim McGrath said.
Gail said this year she's on a mission to look out for safety of her neighbor and the city she's come to love.
"The bullets go up. They're coming down somewhere. They can really hurt somebody or kill somebody," Gail said. "The reality of celebratory gunfire is that it's completely unnecessary. It's illegal and it is very dangerous."
Shaw neighbors will come together with other south city residents to host a Ceasefire Project which aims to put a stop to gun violence in the city. They have invited St. Louis Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed to speak at the event. The meeting will be held Wednesday, January 16th at 6:30 p.m. at Tower Grove Baptist Church (4257 Magnolia Avenue).
For the first time, the St. Louis police department has a confidential tip line, just for gunshots. If you hear shots, you should call 911. But if you know anything police should know, you can call 314-332-3780.
