LOUISVILLE — Two juveniles were arrested for the Sept. 22 shooting death of 16-year-old Eastern High School student Tyree Smith. Smith was shot in an apparent drive-by while waiting at a school bus stop at the corner of Dr. W.J Hodge and Chestnut streets.
What You Need To Know
- Shooting killed Tyree Smith, injured two others at bus stop
- Juveniles are also JCPS students
- Smith was 145th homicide victim in Louisville in 2021
- LMPD said investigation is ongoing
Louisville Metro Police Department Lt. Donny Burbrink announced during press conference Thursday that the juveniles, who are also Jefferson County Public Schools students, have been arrested and charged with complicity to murder, first-degree complicity to assault and second-degree complicity to assault. The assault charges stem from a 13-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl injured in the shooting.
“We were able to arrest two juveniles for this heinous crime,” Burbrink said. “Both juveniles were taken into custody and charged yesterday. Because both suspects are juveniles, the amount of information we can release about this case will be limited," Burbrink said.
During the press conference, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said the scourge of gun violence in Louisville and cities across America can never be the “new normal.”
“Public safety is my No. 1 priority, and every department in Metro government is focused on the challenge of gun violence and getting weapons off the street and holding people accountable for these acts of violence,” he said. “That obviously includes our hardworking Louisville Metro Police Department officers and our office for Safe and Healthy Neighborhoods team and everybody in Metro government, hopefully, everybody in the city as well.”
LMPD Chief Erika Shields called Smith’s shooting death “truly horrific.”
“Tyree was an all-star student,” she said. “He was doing everything that we ask of kids, and he's murdered, all standing waiting on his school bus. We should not be standing here today, and we simply must do better as a community. To the family of Tyrese Smith, I'm sorry we're here.”
Burbrink thanked the public for help investigating the shooting and said the arrests resulted from a team effort.
“Without the assistance of the public, I don't believe we would be in the position we are in today,” he said. “I'd like to thank all of our federal partners who assisted us throughout this investigation, providing a vast amount of resources to assist us in this process. A special thanks goes to JCPS security staff that shared information with us and assisted us in identifying all parties associated with this case. Finally, our new partnership with DNA Labs International was crucial in the successful outcome. While we are happy to provide Tyrese’s family with answers, our work is nowhere near complete. Our ultimate goal was to provide every family who has suffered the same way Tyrese’s family has the answers that they deserve.”
Smith was the 145th homicide victim in Louisville in 2021.