LMPD :: Louisville Metro Police Department
IMAGE

Community vows to reclaim violence-ridden area

Man slain on Louis Coleman Drive

IMAGE
PHOTO

A west Louisville family is reliving a nightmare, the slaying of a loved one, at the same location they lost another nearly four decades ago.

On Monday night, 49-year-old Dana Maurice Loud was gunned down on Louis Coleman Drive near Vermont Avenue.

Loud's slaying is the latest incident in an area where crime has become the norm.

It's d'ej`a vu for sisters Sheree Williams and Kim Craig. Their friend was gunned down at the exact location they lost another loved one decades ago.

"My brother, Eric Benson Smith, was killed there and now here it is, Maurice, and both of them were so much alike," said Williams.

After their brother's death, the family moved to California to escape the violence.

It was there they met Loud and became close friends.

When the sisters returned in the '90s, Loud followed.

He was shot to death near Vermont Liquors on Monday.

"He did not deserve to go out like that and I hope they catch whoever did this to him and I hope he gets justice because he deserves it," said Craig.

The area recently took a backslide into violence.

Bishop Dennis V. Lyons worked hard years ago to make the block safe by pushing for lampposts and a police substation.

"This was once the most dangerous corner in the city of Louisville, but the church, the community, the business and the politicians networked together and we cleaned this up. What happened this time is that we backed off," Lyons said.

Lyons has vowed to turn the area around again.

"We've got to take it back and say there will be no more loitering and drinking and drugging in this area. There has to be no tolerance and, with the help of the community, we'll have it back," said Lyons.

Loud leaves behind a wife and 16-year-old son.

There are still no arrests in his case so police are appealing to the public.