In the early morning hours of June 23, 2024, a chaotic scene unfolded in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, claiming the life of Larry Lewis III, a 26-year-old Black male. The violence erupted around 3:30 a.m. near the intersection of 10th and Market streets, an area known for the Citygarden sculpture park. What began as a dispute amongst a group of women in the park quickly escalated when men intervened, leading to an exchange of gunfire that shattered the night.
When the shooting ceased,
six individuals had been struck by bullets. Emergency responders arrived to find Lewis critically wounded; he was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The other five victims, consisting of four men between the ages of 18 and 24 and one 21-year-old woman, survived the encounter with varying degrees of injury. The incident marked a significant violent outbreak in the downtown area, prompting an immediate homicide investigation by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.
In the weeks following the shooting, investigators utilized surveillance footage and social media activity to identify a suspect. Authorities arrested 23-year-old Jherrit Stansberry in late July 2024 in connection with the incident. Detectives alleged that Stansberry had posted on Instagram from the location around the time of the shooting, and a surviving victim identified him as the person who shot them from behind. Stansberry was subsequently charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action.
