14-year-old charged as adult in deadly shooting after St. Louis County track meet

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - A 14-year-old has been charged as an adult after a shooting earlier this year at a track meet.

The shooting happened on March 31 in the parking lot of McCluer-South Berkeley STEAM High School after the Rod Staggs Freshman-Sophomore Track and Field Invitational.

LaJuan Swopes, 13, was killed, and another teenager was injured.

On Monday, Judge Jason Dodson ruled that the suspect, Jakai Lewis, would be charged as an adult. At the time of the shooting, Lewis was 13 years old.

Following the judge’s ruling, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Lewis with second-degree murder, first-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action.

At the time of the shooting, Lisa LaGrone with Safe Streets, Safe Communities, told First Alert 4 that the suspect and the victims had a history, and as someone serving as an advocate to stop gun violence, she wished she could have talked to both sides before shots rang out.