When “NBC Nightly News” aired on Thursday, Oct. 8, anchor Tom Llamas introduced its fifth story this way, after a report on student rioting in Paris:
“Back here at home, this is also developing: the urgent investigation into a possible serial killer after five men were killed in Lansing, Michigan, under similar circumstances.”
The report was one in a wave of stories by national news organizations on the deaths of homeless men on the River Trail over the last year. The story started getting their attention a week ago when Lansing Police Chief Robert Backus said at a press conference: “One question we are being asked is, 'Do we have a serial killer in Lansing?’”
Llamas went beyond what officials have released about causes of death when he said all five were killed. Authorities have called three of the deaths homicides. The medical examiner has not ruled yet in a fourth case; in the fifth, it could not determine the cause.
The coverage is not going unnoticed by city officials. As one put it, it’s “never fun being a national news item!”
Lansing Mayor Andy Schor declined to be interviewed on what he thinks of the coverage.
Instead, his spokesperson, Scott Bean, issued a statement, which called the River Trail and downtown “safe for residents and visitors.”
“LPD has significantly increased their presence downtown and on the river trail at all hours of the day and night,” the statement said. “Because these attacks specifically targeted unhoused individuals, we also continue to reach out to this population through street outreach teams to offer access to services and overnight shelter.”
Julie Pingston, president and CEO of Choose Lansing (formerly the Greater Lansing Convention & Visitors Bureau), said her organization was working with the Lansing Police Department “to ensure a safe environment for all our visitors and meeting attendees.”
“We are sharing the schedules of the events taking place so they are aware of the times when people are coming and going between the hotels and convention center,” she elaborated.
Pingston said her office has not received any calls from visitors expressing safety concerns.
Rather, her office is “reaching out to planners with upcoming events downtown” to answer their questions and allay any worries.
As for safety on the River Trail itself, Backus outlined how LPD has stepped up patrols and camera surveillance — though more of the latter is needed, he said.
He said that one pattern in the possible assaults is that they occurred in the early morning hours, when the River Trail is closed to the public.
“I do not have concerns for safety on the River Trail outside of these hours,” he said.
