Hennepin County charges man with assault, riot in last month’s attack on family homeless shelter

A man allegedly fired shots into the sky, shot a car and pointed a gun at a woman holding an infant child while terrorizing residents of St. Anne’s Place, a 54-person shelter for homeless families in north Minneapolis last month, according to charges filed Thursday.

Travin Willie Merritt, 30, of Minneapolis was charged with four counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, and one count each of second-degree riot with a dangerous weapon, reckless discharge of a firearm and carrying a pistol without a permit in connection with the attack.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office filed the charges two weeks after they dropped criminal charges against another man for the same crime. That man had been misidentified by the Minneapolis Police Department.

Eureka D. Riser, 33, of Minneapolis was also charged with two felonies in connection with the attack, which occurred on Sept. 5 at 2634 Russell Av. N.

Merritt told police that Riser is his sister. No attorney was listed for him.

The assault led the homeless shelter to be vacated and boarded with plywood. Residents still have not returned.

People Serving People CEO Hoang Murphy said that his organization, which operates St. Anne’s Place, hadn’t been made aware of the charges or the fact that Merritt was arrested on Oct. 1. Displaced residents had been transferred to a hotel initially, at a cost of $9,000 per night, and then were moved to a downtown shelter. That meant several beds at that facility were not available for others in need.

“We’re not going to return families until it’s safe to do so, so this is one step towards that,” Murphy said. “This is what families and staff were asking for. That the folks who did this harm that is was addressed and it was demonstrated that even if you’re a homeless person, or staying at a homeless shelter, even if you live in north [Minneapolis], justice will still be provided for you.”

Security cameras captured repeated assaults on the night of Sept. 5 on residents of St. Anne’s Place. Footage from three cameras at the shelter showed people — apparently neighbors from two homes across the street — attacking the property. The entire incident lasted about four hours. Shelter staff said ongoing disputes over street parking led up to the attack.

The handling of the case by the MPD came under criticism. They were called to the scene but made no arrests and once they left neighbors began attacking a resident’s car again. Police spokesman Garrett Parten told the Star Tribune that the incident involved a fight between two groups of people, that police hadn’t seen the security footage and that the shelter’s narrative was “not accurate.”

People Serving People then provided a still image from an interior camera showing police officers using St. Anne’s computers to watch the security footage on Sept. 5.

According to the criminal charges against Merritt:

Merritt approached the building with a gun and pointed it at the front door while a woman was on the side of the door holding a infant child. Merritt then left, got in his car, and shot at the woman’s empty car.

Another woman at the building told police there had been an argument with neighbors across the street over parking and it turned physical. Merritt came out of the building and stuck the woman in the back of her head with a gun. He then walked up to another woman and hit her in the head multiple times with the same weapon, nearly dislocating her eyeball and causing vision problems. He told the women they needed to get back and fired two shots in the air.

At that point several residents ran inside St. Anne’s Place and a staff member barricaded the door behind them. That staff member told police that Merritt ran up to the door and said “something to the effect of, he will shoot women and children.”

After Merritt was arrested, police searched his home and found a .38 caliber revolver with one round of live ammunition on a dresser drawer.

In an interview with police, Merritt said that Riser is his sister and another sister was also involved in the altercation. He said he tried to pull them away from the fight. When that didn’t work he fired a shot in the air. He denied hitting anyone with his gun but said there was a large fight and “everyone was hitting each other with objects.” He said he tossed the gun after the incident to dispose of evidence.

Merritt is in custody at Hennepin County jail in lieu of $150,000 bail. He is awaiting trial in Ramsey County on a separate charge of carrying a pistol without a permit. Riser posted $20,000 bail and her next court date is set for Nov. 6.

Staff writers Susan Du and Paul Walsh contributed to this report.