LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Last week’s violence tipped the scale in Louisville and set a new, deadly record for the city.
As of Monday afternoon, there have been 121 criminal homicides reported in Metro Louisville, which breaks the city’s record of 117 homicides for the entire year of 2016.
The LMPD Homicide Unit of 24 detectives also investigates non-fatal shootings, and as of Monday afternoon, there have been 426 shootings. That’s more than double what it was this time last year.
Lt. Donny Burbrink addressed the record numbers in a press conference Monday and said the unit is overwhelmed.
“It’s basically to the point where we’re not able to provide victims’ families the proper investigative services that we would like to," he said. "And it’s completely unfortunate. We’re hoping that sooner or later things, start calming down so our victims’ families can get some of the answers that they need."
LMPD’s Transparency website lists four pages of victims’ pictures from cases that are still open. Currently, 65% of this year’s homicides are unsolved, including that of 19-year-old Krislynn Averitte.
“Krislynn is not just a number," said Brittany Brewer, the victim's mother. "We want justice for her."
Averitte was shot and killed on July 7 outside her home on Woodpointe Boulevard, off Blue Lick Road, in Okolona. LMPD had no suspects right now.
Brewer remembers getting the phone call from Averitte’s father saying that she had been shot and then driving as fast as possible to her home.
“I remember getting out of my car and trying to run up to the scene,” Brewer said between tears. “And they wouldn’t let me up there. So I started screaming, ‘That’s my daughter! That’s my daughter!’ He told me that they were already doing CPR on her, and he wasn’t sure if she was going to make it.”
Averitte was rushed to the hospital but did not survive.
Brewer said she has heard very few updates since July from the homicide detective assigned to Averitte’s case, and she recently asked the unit's leader to assign a new detective to the case. Without answers, Brewer still wonders about possible security footage from a neighbor’s home, possible DNA evidence, possible motive, possible suspect, possible cell phone records and more.
Brewer created a Facebook support group for families of homicide victims, and she said it’s a similar story with each family. They feel they’re not getting any results or updates from detectives.
“My message to LMPD is maybe some of us parents wouldn’t be so frustrated with them if they communicated with us a little more," Brewer said. "My kid is dead! I don’t understand. How do you not expect me to be mad when my kid is dead, and I don’t feel like you all are doing anything to help the situation."
If you have any information regarding Averitte’s case, or any other homicide case, you can call 502-574-LMPD.
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