Arraignment Up Next for Alleged Murderer

By: Tim Schmidt
Posted 1/1/09

Jonathan C. Reid, 22, was shot twice and killed on July 13, 2008, when a St. Louis man, identified as Steward by law enforcement authorities, allegedly entered a residence and fired a minimum of …

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Arraignment Up Next for Alleged Murderer

Posted

Jonathan C. Reid, 22, was shot twice and killed on July 13, 2008, when a St. Louis man, identified as Steward by law enforcement authorities, allegedly entered a residence and fired a minimum of three shots. Steward, 24, also is accused of wounding Sharon Bush, a 59-year-old woman who lived at the home located at 120 South Elm in Wright City. Steward has been charged with first-degree murder, second-degree assault, six counts of armed criminal action and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Montgomery County Associate Circuit Judge Kelly C. Broniec presided over Monday's hearing and at the conclusion bound the case over to circuit court for trial. Steward did not speak during his court appearance and only made slight contact with Reid's family members when he walked into the courtroom. Steward is scheduled to be arraigned in circuit court Tuesday, Jan. 6, at 9 a.m. Family members and friends of Reid filled two rows in the courtroom Monday. Some wore shirts displaying a picture of Reid. Afterward, Reid's father, Charles Reid Jr., said the family is doing its best to move on from the tragic incident. Reid had two children - a 3-year-old son and 1-year-old daughter - with Krystal Hanna who testified on Monday and said Steward was the gunmen who killed her boyfriend. "It hurts, but we're doing pretty good," Charles Reid Jr. told The Record. "We worry about the kids more than anything. The boy asks about his dad all the time." He later added, "I just want him to get life in prison and he can sit back and realize what he did. I lost somebody, so I figured he should do time for what he did." Authorities said Reid was shot in the chest, face and neck. He was flown to St. John's Mercy Medical Center in Creve Coeur where he died later that evening. Bush, who is Hanna's grandmother, was shot in the arm but was not seriously injured. Sgt. Tim Fagan, an officer with the Florissant Police Department who was activated onto the Major Case Squad which investigated the incident, testified that Steward admitted to shooting Reid during questioning held at the Warren County Jail following his arrest on July 15. Before the shooting, Fagan said Steward and Reid had talked by phone regarding the PlayStation system. Before arriving in Wright City from St. Louis, Steward allegedly bought a handgun for $150 and then purchased ammunition at the Wentzville Wal-Mart. He entered the home with a fully loaded gun with six extra shells, according to Fagan. "He indicated he had shot Mr. Reid two times and he also fired a couple of other shots as he was making his way out of the residence," Fagan said in part of his testimony. The shooting occurred in the living room of the home. Hanna said she was sitting on the couch with her two children on her lap when Reid and Steward began arguing. Bush wanted the yelling to stop, Hanna said, but then Steward pulled out a gun. "When I heard the gunshot, I knew Jonathan had been shot," testified Hanna as she began crying. Reid and two others present at the Wright City house also were carrying guns, Fagan said in response to questioning by Public Defender Milan Berry. After the shooting, Steward told Fagan he was picked up by a friend who drove him to the St. Louis Mills mall in Hazelwood where he disposed of the gun in the shirt he was wearing that evening. Steward was on the run for about two days until being apprehended at an undisclosed location. After questioning Steward about the location of the gun, Fagan said the two of them drove to the mall and found the gun identified by Steward as the one used in the killing. Authorities said this was the first homicide in Wright City since 2005.


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