Following a Sunday afternoon shooting in Louisville that left one dead and five injured, some people have tried to draw a connection between this specific instance and the body of a missing 16-year-old identified earlier this month.
Mayor Will Hill shut down those rumors during Tuesday’s episode of MidDays with Gerard Gibert.
“There is some belief that this Sunday was a carryover. There’s even some speculating or even the thought that it was a retaliation effort,” Hill said. “But it’s unmerited, because of the cause of death and things of that sort of what was happening with the young man who was missing and found dead.”
On Jan. 30, railroad workers discovered a body while working in the woods. It was later identified as Montevious Goss, who had been missing for over two weeks after last being seen waiting to go to school at his aunt’s house.
While Goss’ autopsy results have not yet been released, Hill said that both law enforcement and the teenager’s family are aware that Sunday’s shooting had nothing to do with the disappearance and death of Goss.
“There’s only one truth, and the family knows the truth. Law enforcement knows the truth,” Hill said.
Hill continued, explaining that Sunday’s shooting is the latest example of a “cultural problem” among the city’s youth population.
“Unfortunately, gun violence and the behavior of this sort is not brand new,” Hill said. “In the post-pandemic world, we’ve seen that significantly go up, especially in juveniles.”
According to Hill, the city’s growing rate of youth violence can, for the most part, be traced back to gang activity.
“Some are saying it’s not gang-related, but we believe and law enforcement believes that if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, walks like a duck, it’s a duck,” Hill said.
Multiple suspects are currently in custody in relation to Sunday’s shooting.
