Dallas police are investigating what may be a robbery-related shooting that left a 17-year-old dead.
Keymere McCriston, a 6-foot, 300-pound 11th grader who played as an offensive lineman at Carter High School, died after sustaining a fatal gunshot wound and crashing his car in the 2700 block of Easter Avenue at around 9 p.m. on February 25, according to DPD Beat.
His brother was in the passenger seat and began crying out for an ambulance.
“‘He’s not going to make it. I need somebody to hurry up,’” nearby resident Jasmine Corbin recalled the teen yelling, according to WFAA.
She had been watching television with her two-year-old son at the time but jumped to action once she heard the commotion and saw the lights go out.
“They were going about 80 mph or so coming from that direction, they hit this pole, which knocked down the whole pole, had all types of live wire on the streets, came through this way of my yard, avoided my neighbors, luckily, came through this way, skid through here,” Corbin said, according to WFAA. “My vehicle actually helped, the impact of my vehicle helped the car stop.”
While McCriston died after Dallas Fire-Rescue took him to a nearby hospital, his brother was treated for a gunshot wound and released.
It was not revealed where the shooting occurred, but detectives from the Dallas Police Department believe the incident began as a robbery attempt. Det. Ronald Kramer is working on the case, and anyone with useful information can reach him at 214-671-3608 or [email protected].
McCriston crashed his car in Council Member Carolyn King Arnold’s District 4, which had logged 127 reports of violent crime in 2024 as of February 28, according to the City’s crime analytics dashboard. These offenses included 36 robberies — a 28.6% hike compared to the year prior — and five murders.
Across Dallas, 338 robberies and 35 murders have been reported, while most “crime against persons” involves black or Hispanic victims, as covered in The Dallas Express. Downtown Dallas regularly logs higher crime rates than Fort Worth’s city center, which has a dedicated police unit and private security officers.
DPD has been struggling to stamp out crime amid a critical officer shortage, with just 3,000 officers fielded. Although a City report previously called for a force of 4,000 officers to adequately ensure public safety, the Dallas City Council voted on a budget allocating just $654 million to DPD this year. As such, the City’s spending on police operations falls well below that seen in other high-crime cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City.
