One man dead following shooting Friday near Rondo Library in St. Paul

A man was killed in an apparent drive-by shooting Friday in St. Paul, continuing a rash of fatal gun violence that has struck the city over the past two months.

According to police, the victim was sitting in a parked vehicle with another male and two small children when a second car drove by, shots were fired, and the car fled.

No one else was injured in the shooting, police said, and the victim died while being transported by ambulance. No arrests have been made.

The shooting was reported just after 1:30 p.m. in the 600 block of Aurora Avenue, just steps away from the Rondo Community Library and St. Albans Church of God.

The shooting marks the 29th homicide of the year in St. Paul, the same number as of the same date last year, according to a Star Tribune database.

There have been 10 homicides over the last two months in St. Paul, eight of which were committed with firearms, according to police reports.

Through September, the city had not recorded more than three homicides in a given month this year. But four occurred in October and five have occurred so far in November.

The increased violence prompted city officials and community leaders to hold a news conference Nov. 14 and plead with the public to do its part in lowering gun violence. They encouraged gun owners to safely secure their firearms and asked others to seek help from police, violence interrupters or the court system when they see worrisome behavior from people known to carry guns.

St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry said the previous homicides involved domestic violence, robbery and drugs — highlighting the fact that guns were the common element.

“Part of the problem is, of course, we have people who have access to firearms, who carry firearms, sometimes for very legitimate reasons, but then are making really bad choices in the moment,” he said.

The United States saw a historic 30% increase in homicides in 2020, which criminologists attribute to the widespread effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fallout from the police murder in Minneapolis of George Floyd.

Homicides have generally fallen locally and nationally since 2021, but they remain elevated compared with 2019 in many U.S. cities, including Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Anyone with information on Friday’s shooting was asked to contact St. Paul police at 651-266-5650.