On January 20, 2023, Michael Hampton, a 19-year-old Black male from Ferguson, Missouri, was fatally shot in St. Louis. The incident occurred late that Friday night, prompting a homicide investigation by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Hampton, who resided in the 9600 block of Venice Drive in St. Louis County, became one of the city's early homicide victims of that year.
Police received a call shortly before midnight, around 11:46 p.m., reporting a shooting victim at the
emergency room of Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Upon their arrival, officers were informed that Hampton had arrived at the medical center suffering from a gunshot wound to the neck. despite life-saving efforts, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Investigators determined that the shooting did not take place at the hospital but had occurred earlier in the 5800 block of Delmar Boulevard, a busy thoroughfare in the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood. The circumstances leading up to the gunfire were not immediately clear, and detectives worked to piece together the events that transpired on Delmar Boulevard before Hampton was transported to the emergency room.
As of the latest available reports following the incident, authorities had not announced any arrests or identified public suspects in connection with the killing. The investigation remained active, with police urging anyone with information about the shooting to contact the Homicide Division or CrimeStoppers. While other individuals with the surname Hampton have appeared in recent St. Louis crime headlines—specifically regarding unrelated cases in late 2024—no breakthroughs specifically tied to Michael Hampton's January 2023 murder have been publicized.
