St. Paul Triple Murder: Police Arrest Man Suspected Of Killing Woman, 2 Children
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A St. Paul community is grieving after three people were killed in their home Saturday.
The shooting happened at about 3 p.m. on the 700 block of Jessie Street in the Railroad Island neighborhood. A GoFundMe account has been set up to help with funeral expenses. On that website, the victims are identified as 30-year-old D'Zondria Wallace, 14-year-old La'Porsha Wallace and 11-year-old Ja'Corbie Wallace.
On Sunday evening, St. Paul police announced the arrest of a 26-year-old man in connection to the murders. Police say he found hiding in an apartment building on the 2100 block of Wilson Avenue on the city's east side at about 7:25 p.m. He was taken into custody without incident.
These murders affected the sermon Senior Pastor Runney Patterson Sr. gave Sunday morning at New Hope Baptist Church, located about two blocks from the crime scene.
"I've been up since 2:30 this morning really praying and crying, asking God to give me strength to stand before my congregation," Patterson Sr. said.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter joined Pastor Patterson Sr. as they spoke to the congregation over Facebook Live, leading them through grief and pain -- something Patterson Sr. wishes he wasn't so familiar with.
"In my 16 years of pastoring, I've funeralized probably over 40 young Afro-American young men to gun violence," he said. "It's heart wrenching."
Saturday evening, St. Paul Police Chief Todd Axtell took to social media to share some thoughts on this particular case. He said in part, "Our hearts are broken tonight … As police officers, homicides affect us most deeply. They feel personal, especially when children are involved. So, we hug our loved ones a little longer, tell them we love them an extra time, put on our uniforms and head into work. And we hope that we can help our city begin to heal.
Patterson Sr. saw Chief Axtell's statement on Facebook, and says the chief called him Sunday morning to update him on the investigation since it happened in such close proximity to his church.
"We haven't always agreed on everything, but what I appreciate about him, he's not afraid nor ashamed to show his emotions. He's a father, he's a grandfather, he's a husband, he's a family man, and so I really believe that he feels the ache, the hurt and pain that what families are going through when things like this happen," Patterson Sr. said.
While community relations with police may be broken right now, Patterson Sr. says it's vital to bring them back together.
"It's a must. It's not an option. If we're going to cure the violence in our community, I don't care if we're White, Black, rich, poor, educated or unlearned," Patterson Sr. said. "It's going to take all of us."
Police say this marks the sixth homicide in the city in just the first month of the year.