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Russell neighborhood fatal shooting leads to calls for renewed sense of community in west Louisville

Another day, another setback for Louisville: a city caught in the continued grips of gun violence—this time in the Russell neighborhood.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — After a fatal shooting Friday in the Russell neighborhood, a community-cornerstone is signaling to people that this one incident doesn’t define progress  being made in the West End.

A Louisville Metro Police Department spokesman said one man died after sustaining multiple gunshot wounds. Officers responded to the scene of 13th and Jefferson St. shortly before 5:30 p.m, where they located a man .

Officers say there was no medical transport as the victim was pronounced dead on the scene by EMS. 

Two blocks from the scene, stands the Louisville Fire Department Headquarters and Molo Village CDC.

The Rev. Dr. Jamesetta Ferguson, President and CEO of Molo Village said the community development center sends its condolences to loved ones of the victim but hopes this incident doesn’t add to the “negative perception” those living “West of S. 9th street” receive.

“I want to make sure that this one incident does not affect the positive trend that is going on in our community,” Ferguson said. “We have worked hard in the Russell community to change the culture, to change the perception so that people will want to come to our community.”

Louisville is in the midst of yet another year facing homicide numbers in the triple digits. Ferguson said while crime is rising across the Metro, not just West Louisville, her community bears the brunt of the criticism.

“It seems like because there is a concentration of incidents in certain parts of the West End, they get a bad rap,” she said. “Sometimes people get confused and want to put everything in one lump sum. We want to make sure people know that this is a safe place, and everyone is welcome.”

Molo comes from the South African Xhosa language and translates to “welcome.” Ferguson said that welcoming people has been the mission of the grassroots nonprofit organization since it got its start in 2011, adding it aims to address some of the complex issues Russell and other West Louisville communities face.

“The Russell neighborhood is a rich community. They have a lot of wonderful people,” she said. “But they have been an underserved community for a long period of time.”

Molo Village carries programs that include accessible banking, child care and social services. And, when the CDC officially opened in the summer 2021, it also featured a health equity center—a multimillion dollar investment for Norton Healthcare.

Ferguson said it's been a blessing for the community, helping people access all sorts of healthcare services.

“[The Health Equity Center] has approximately 25 case managers that work throughout the entire West End, to help people to get their needs met, whether it's health care, medical, mental health, food insufficiency, or housing,” Ferguson said. “They have wraparound services to help individuals so that they can get the support that they need.” 

The center also looks to  engage the neighborhood's residents in holistic approaches to community development.

“We have to come together to address these issues and recognize that, yes, there is an issue but we need to do something about it,” Ferguson said. “If we can all work together, then we can hopefully change the trajectory of violence in this community.”

The Homicide Unit is taking over the investigation which currently remains ongoing with no arrest(s). 

Anyone with information is asked to call the anonymous Crime Tip Hotline at 502-574-LMPD (5673) or use the anonymous Crime Tip Portal at LMPD Crime Tip Portal.

MOLO Village's Dr. Jamesetta Ferguson later sent a statement about the shooting, saying they "will remain vigilant in watching out for our neighbors."

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