On the afternoon of April 29, 2015, violence erupted in the North St. Louis neighborhood of the 4700 block of Natural Bridge Avenue, claiming the life of 22-year-old male Curtis Crawford. Crawford, a resident of the 1400 block of Hickory Lane, was standing outside a barbershop when he was ambushed and struck by multiple bullets. Officers patrolling nearby heard the gunfire around 2:30 p.m.
and rushed to the scene, where they discovered Crawford suffering from critical gunshot wounds to his torso. Despite the immediate response, the young man succumbed to his injuries, marking a tragic end to his life on that spring Wednesday.
The ensuing investigation by St. Louis police rapidly identified a suspect, 28-year-old Andre Mitchell, who had fled the scene on foot immediately after the shooting. A city patrol officer who heard the shots spotted the gunman running and engaged in a foot pursuit, ultimately apprehending Mitchell in the 4700 block of Sacramento Avenue. During the chase and subsequent search, officers recovered two weapons believed to be used in the attack: a 9mm handgun and a. 45-caliber semiautomatic pistol. Authorities determined that Mitchell had targeted Crawford in an act of retaliation; Mitchell believed Crawford was responsible for the death of his friend, Brandon Vance, who had been killed twelve days earlier. Mitchell had reportedly seen Crawford at Vance’s funeral and, upon spotting him again the following day, was overcome with rage and opened fire.
Legal proceedings against Mitchell followed, with prosecutors initially charging him with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and unlawful possession of a firearm. In November 2016, more than a year after the fatal shooting, Andre Mitchell appeared in court and reached a plea agreement. He pleaded guilty to reduced charges, including second-degree murder, armed criminal action, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. In accordance with the plea deal, the judge sentenced Mitchell to life in prison with the possibility of parole for the murder charge, to run concurrently with a thirty-year sentence for the armed criminal action and additional time for the weapons charges.
