ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - About 50 people gathered on a scenic overlook in St. Paul to mourn a father of four who was fatally shot during an altercation over a car accident.
The mourners released balloons Sunday in honor of 39-year-old Douglas Lewis. Police say he was killed Friday night along Highway 61 near the Dayton’s Bluff neighborhood by a man he had argued with following a traffic crash.
Kimberly Lawler, a U.S. Army reservist, says she saw Lewis fall to the ground in front of her house while a driver fled in a pickup truck.
Lawler and several bystanders tried to help the victim by applying pressure to his wounds, the Star Tribune reported. But, he died at Regions Hospital. Those who rendered aid said Lewis did not have a gun.
The driver who fled returned to the scene and surrendered.
Lawler made a simple wooden cross and posted it at the end of her driveway. On Sunday, relatives stopped by to grieve, placing mementos around the cross and flowers at its base.
“I’m not gonna let somebody get shot down in front of me without marking it,” Lawler said. “Using (a gun) is the easy part. Try not to use it for a change.”
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