A Murder Mess And a Shabby Shooting - Updates

Police have made arrests in the bizarre Hwy 494 crashed-Cadillac murder: "Arrests made in Bloomington murder".

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) - Two 18-year-olds, one man and one woman, have been arrested in the shooting death of a 23-year-old man whose bullet-riddled body was found in a car on Interstate 494 on March 25, Bloomington police said Monday. They are Matthew Benjamin Oothoudt, 18, and Maria Michelle Big Bear, 18.

This crime is very Minneapolis-like, despite the fact that it took place close to the border in Bloomington.

Frankly, I'm more concerned that there are idiots like these running loose in our city than I am with them hurting anyone other than themselves:

Oothoudt and the victim, John Charles Roberts of Welch, were riding in a vehicle with several other people about 4 a.m. when Oothoudt brandished a gun, which prompted a struggle, police said.

The suspect allegedly shot Roberts several times then fled the scene in another vehicle. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner has said Roberts died of a gunshot wound to the head.

The driver of the first vehicle, with Roberts still inside, fled the scene and got into an accident on I-494. The other people in the car fled, leaving emergency responders to find Roberts' body.

It's hard to believe we're sharing living space with some of these creatures.

KSTP News has an update on the teenagers who were shot in North Minneapolis last Sunday night: "Two Minneapolis teens remain hospitalized after being shot".

Two teens, ages 15 and 17, are in serious condition at North Memorial Medical Center after being shot Sunday night in an apparent robbery attempt. It happened about 10 p.m. at the notorious north Minneapolis intersection of 26th and Knox. When police arrived both victims had fled the scene [??] and were found about a block away were they'd collapsed.

Monday, investigators returned to the area and retrieved a videotape from a corner store. It's believed an outside surveillance camera taped the shooting as it happened.

[Photo courtesy KARE 11 News]

There's still no explanation given as to why these two teenagers weren't at home doing their homework on a school night.

Marshele Payne has the same thoughts:

Marshele Payne said hearing gunfire out her window is all too common. But she said even if the two teens shot Sunday night are innocent victims, "they should have been in the house, in bed and then getting ready for school, instead they were out in the street and that makes you wonder where their parents are."

Sometimes we reap what we sow. God bless you Marshele for showing us that common sense is not dead.

Finally, is it time to call for reinforcements?

The intersection of Knox and 26th has seen its share of crime over the years. After a series of violent crimes in 2003 city and state leaders descended on the neighborhood and promised action. Several extra State Patrol officers were called in to work the streets. But now, residents say, the problems are back, "it's an ongoing thing, it seems like it'll never stop."