KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Three people were shot, including one who was confirmed dead at the scene, on Saturday night near 22nd St. and Elmwood Ave.
Police were called to a fire station in the 2100 block of Van Brunt shortly before 10:45 p.m.
Upon arrival, officers located three shooting victims in a vehicle. One Hispanic male in his late teens was pronounced dead at the scene, while two other Hispanic males, also in their late teens, were transported to a local hospital in serious but stable condition.
Police said it appears they were shot in the 2200 block of Elmwood then drove to the fire station for help.
Neighbors in the area of the shootings heard several loud bangs.
"It was a couple gun shots, like five to six or so," Karen Barraza said.
"I just thought it was fireworks, so I kept watching TV," Barraza's 10-year-old nephew, Daniel Jones, said.
Unfortunately, it's a sound Downtown Church of Christ Minister Wes Anderson hears in the neighborhood far too often.
"When I heard the gunfire just a few days ago, I heard more gunfire and said man, 'There it goes again,'" he said. "And it just reminds you that people, they're not just finished with the violence and I often say to myself, what is it going to take?"
Anderson's congregation worships near 22nd St. and Van Brunt Blvd., so he'd love to see the killings stop.
"We've got to try to find a way to stop the violence," he said. "It's easy to say, 'Put down the guns,' but we men in our community need to reach out to our young men so that we can make an impact in their lives and give them a different focus, give them something to do of value that will pull them off these streets."
Anyone with any information is encouraged to call the TIPS Hotline at 816 474-TIPS (8477).
