Police respond to 3 shootings hours apart on Wednesday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Police are calling on the community for support after officers responded to several shootings Wednesday.

"We need people to collectively say 'enough is enough,'" LMPD Assistant Chief Josh Judah said.

On Wednesday, police responded two fatal shootings and one non-fatal shooting.

The first shooting was about 4:30 p.m. in the Newburg area around the intersection of Poplar Level Road and Jefferson Boulevard. When officers arrived, a spokesperson said they found the victim with several gunshot wounds. The Jefferson County Coroner's Office has since identified the victim as Mario Marks, 18, of Louisville.

Derrick Stover, 21, has been charged with murder in the case. He pleaded not guilty in court Thursday morning.

Hours later, LMPD responded to a shooting downtown off Armory Place in downtown Louisville.

"We have what appears to be a road rage incident involving someone at work being randomly shot," Judah said.

That victim's identity has not been released. Judah said the man, who is believed to be in his early 30s, is "clinging" to life in the hospital.

Then, just after 10 p.m. officers in the Newburg area responded to a deadly shooting at a home off Ailanthus Trail. Police said the victim there was a child.

That victim, now identified as 9-year-old Jayden Harris, was taken to the hospital before police arrived but did not survive.

"This one, it hits home," said Maj. Corey Robinson, LMPD sixth division commander. "I'm a dad. Before I'm a police officer, I'm a father. It's very, very difficult. We've had several children shot this year in my division. Thankfully they didn't end this way."

LMPD did not immediately know what led up to the shooting.

Officer Beth Ruoff, a spokeswoman for the department, said Thursday that it's not clear if the gunfire came from inside or outside the home, but said Harris was inside when he was struck.

On Thursday, Judah said that this amount of violence in the city can not be the "new normal."

"Louisville cannot be a place where having multiple people killed and critically injured on a Wednesday is OK," he said. "It's not OK on a Saturday. It's not OK any day."

There have been more than 130 homicides in Louisville this year. Nearly 15% of those victims are juveniles who are 17 years old or younger.

Anyone with information on these shootings or others is asked to call LMPD's crime tip line at 574-LMPD. Callers can remain anonymous.

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