On Monday, St. Louis Public Radio (STLPR) began publishing a weeklong investigative series about more than 1,000 homicides that have gone unsolved in St. Louis.
Journalists at STLPR, APM Reports, and The Marshall Project partnered on the investigation that reveals homicide data that the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department worked to keep from the public eye, showing that shoddy detective work, staffing shortages and eroding community trust contributed to the department’s inability to solve cases.
This investigative series is the result of a yearslong battle over a request for detailed homicide data from the city’s police department. The collaboration between STLPR and APM began in 2020, when both media organizations sought data from the department to better understand how often police solve homicides in the city.
The police department released some data, but withheld information on the clearance rate — whether the police solved the cases in question. Ultimately, APM Reports filed a lawsuit against the SLMPD in November of 2021 for violating Missouri’s open records law. That lawsuit was settled in June of 2023, leading to release of the data.
“Today is a victory for all who demand transparency and accountability from their public institutions,” STLPR Interim News Director Brian Heffernan said on Monday. “It’s clear the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department did not want us to publish this reporting. This yearslong investigation is a reminder of the power and value of relentless journalists who work to serve the public interest.”
An initial report published by STLPR and APM Reports last summer revealed the raw number of unsolved murders in the city between 2014 and 2023. This new multi-part series results from a year’s worth of analysis and investigative reporting by STLPR, APM Reports and The Marshall Project on the clearance rate and the tremendous impact that unsolved homicides have on communities and families in St. Louis.
“I am grateful that [these families] chose to share their stories,” said STLPR Justice Correspondent Rachel Lippmann. “I can't imagine how hard it is to relive a moment over and over again, especially when you don’t have answers.”
“Multiple experts have told me the same thing. When the job of the police, as perceived by the public, is to make arrests for crimes, if they can’t do that, it degrades the faith of communities that already feel devalued,” Lippmann said.
The reporting also reveals that in many cases, unsolved homicides lead to additional violence.
“The inability to solve cases adds more cases to [the detectives’] workload,” Lippmann said. “And you just set up a spiral of unsolved cases that can lead to additional violence, which leads to additional unsolved cases and it just keeps going.”
Read and Hear the Unsolved 5-Part Series
MONDAY: Part I
Why 1,000 homicides in St. Louis remain unsolved 🔉
Journalists Rachel Lippmann and Tom Scheck discuss this story on St. Louis on the Air 🔊
How we reported on St. Louis' homicide investigations
TUESDAY: Part II
In St. Louis, a racial disparity of whose murders get solved 🔉
WEDNESDAY: Part III
Some St. Louis detectives may have botched homicide investigations 🔉
THURSDAY: Part IV
As murders increased, St. Louis police struggled for resources to solve cases 🔉
FRIDAY: Part V
St. Louis homicide cases often go unsolved. Victims' families want justice 🔉
COMING SOON
MONDAY, JUNE 10: Five Key Takeaways
Join us June 25th:
STLPR, APM Reports and The Marshall Project will jointly host a discussion of the reporting on Tuesday, June 25 at 7 p.m. in the Community Room at STLPR’s headquarters at UMSL at Grand Center.
The public is invited to hear from reporters and editors from each organization about what they’ve uncovered. We’ll also hear from community members who have lost loved ones to violence in St. Louis and have worked tirelessly to get justice for them. Audience Q&A and reception to follow.
Support for this reporting
This series of stories was produced as part of a collaborative investigation between St. Louis Public Radio, The Marshall Project, and APM Reports through the Public Media Accountability Initiative, which supports investigative reporting at local media outlets around the country. Financial support comes from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and donations from individuals who believe that journalism is essential for a thriving democracy.
