St. Louis Police Foundation spends $860K to increase downtown St. Louis patrols

ST. LOUIS (KMOV) -- The St. Louis Police Foundation is giving $860,000 to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department for overtime patrols in downtown St. Louis for the coming months.

Sgt. Charles Wall with SLMPD said the initiative began July 7 and is expected to run for five months. He said the program typically consists of four-hour overtime shifts for one sergeant and six police officers per shift.

The St. Louis Police Foundation, a nonprofit, also funds $100,000 of SLMPD Chief Robert Tracy’s $275,000 yearly salary, as reported by First Alert 4 Investigates. Tracy was named chief of the department in December.

The foundation’s website says it has raised more than $36 million in the last 15 years to support SLMPD and the St. Louis County Police Department.

The July 7 start date for the overtime patrols was two and a half weeks after a 17-year-old was killed and 11 other teens were injured in a shooting Downtown. In 2023, there have been 24 shootings in the Downtown and Downtown West neighborhoods, according to SLMPD data compiled by First Alert 4. Four have been fatal.

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