Austin Lee Mendenhall Sr., 38, was shot and killed on August 31, 2023, in the 300 block of Fernwood Avenue on Youngstown’s South Side. Police received a ShotSpotter alert at 7:18 p.m.; officers arriving found Mendenhall lying in a front yard and emergency personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. The shooting was the city’s third homicide that week and brought Youngstown’s yearly total to 11.

Hundreds of people gathered on the block as officers tried to secure the scene, a crowd that police say complicated initial investigative efforts. The Youngstown Police Department is asking the community for help; family members, including the child’s mother Jaquaila Dothard, say someone in the neighborhood may have information and are seeking answers.

If anyone saw activity in the 300 block of Fernwood Avenue on the evening of August 31, 2023, or has information about Austin Mendenhall’s death, contact Crime Stoppers or the Youngstown Police Department.