A 17-year-old high school senior was shot and killed Wednesday night while driving on Interstate 170 near Midland Blvd in St. Louis, Missouri. Alyssa Wilson was a senior at McCluer North High School, where she was a student-athlete and an office aide, and she planned to attend college next year. Two days after the shooting, investigators announced that two people had been taken into custody. Their identities have not been released, and investigators say the details available remain limited.
The case has brought fresh attention to interstate shootings in the St. Louis region, where drivers on busy highways have been killed in similar incidents in recent years. For families here on the Suncoast, the story carries a familiar weight. We spend our days on I-75, I-275, and the Sunshine Skyway, and most of us know what it feels like to watch a teenager drive off alone for the first time.
School communities often become the heart of stories like this one, and McCluer North is now mourning a student described as a promising athlete and a dependable helper in the front office. Her plans for next year are the kind of thing a school remembers. As the investigation continues and the case moves forward, the families left behind are left to do what families do: lean on each other.
What’s one thing you’ve taught a new driver in your household that you think everyone should know?
