After violent weekend, police and local non-profits vow to step up efforts over summer months

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - St. Louis City police addressed a weekend of violence that left six people dead from Friday through Monday and a number of others injured and vowed to increase efforts ahead of the often busy summer months.

“We will continue this weekend with our Summer Violence and Cruising detail where we have several units from our department, including our mobile reserve, our SWAT units, our Intelligence Unit and Traffic Unit that will have a large presence in downtown this weekend,” said Major Ryan Counsins with SLMPD on Monday.

Major Cousins said that unit was in parts of the city this weekend, including on Cherokee Street, where two shootings, one on Friday and one on Saturday, left people dead and wounded.

But the violence wasn’t contained to the popular areas of Downtown and Cherokee Street. Four teenage girls were shot on Saturday night in the Hyde Park neighborhood. Two of the teens died and have been identified as Aaliyah Gillom, 18, from Castle Point in North County, and Asia Baker, 18, from Spanish Lake in North County.

“Just to know her is to love her. She just turned 18. Beautiful,” said LaShaundra Weaver, a former teacher of Aaliya Gillom.

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