Suspect Arrested in Fatal Shooting of 9-Year-Old in Ferguson

Police have arrested a man in connection with the deadly shooting of a 9-year-old girl last week in in Ferguson, Missouri, the result of an investigation that the mayor said was a model of the city’s new community policing policy.

De’Eris Brown, 21, of O’Fallon, Missouri, was arrested by a U.S. Marshals task force outside a St. Louis Hospital Wednesday, officials said. Ferguson Police Chief Andre Anderson said he has confessed to firing into the home on Aug. 18. {snip}

De’Eris Brown

Jamyla Bolden was struck by gunfire as she was sitting on a bed doing homework at around 9:38 p.m. that night. Police said Brown fired “several shots” into the home but did not release a motive, saying the shooting was still under investigation. Bolden’s mother was also struck and wounded.

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Ferguson Mayor James Knowles said Thursday that tips from the community were crucial to the investigation into Jamyla’s killing, and said the city has changed its policy toward “a more community-oriented policing model.”

“At the vigil the other night for Ms. Bolden there were several calls from individuals leading the vigil — members of the community who we’d seen protest over the last year — who were crying out over those bullhorns to speak to the police, to interact with the police, to cooperate with the police, to give tips,” Knowles said.

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Jamyla Bolden’s funeral is scheduled for Saturday, NBC station KSDK reported. Ira DeWitt, wife of St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt, will pay for the little girl’s funeral expenses, the station said.