By Ken Klein OAAA Executive Vice President, Government Affairs

In the fog of the (long) 10-way presidential debate in Houston, out of home media (OOH) got a shout-out as an effective problem solver for crime fighters.

“There was a kid named Byron Phillips that was shot on his front porch,” recalled Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-MN, a former prosecutor. “No one had bothered to figure out who did it. When I came into that office, we worked with the community groups; we put up billboards; we found the shooter and we put him in jail.”

Politically, this anecdote fits Klobuchar’s narrative as a grounded Midwestern problem-solver. The September 12 Democratic debate was broadcast on ABC.

Court records verify heart-tugging details of the criminal case cited by Klobuchar.

“At around 6:15 p.m. on June 2, 1996, 11-year-old Byron Phillips was playing with his cousin and a friend on the front porch of the friend’s North Minneapolis home,” the Minnesota Supreme Court said in a case called State v.  Blanche.

“While Phillips was playing, a bullet fired from a passing car hit him in the chest. Phillips died at the scene as a result of the shooting.”

Police found 10 shell casings on the street. But the case stalled, as Klobuchar mentioned.

“More than a year after the shooting, in July 1997, a woman named Vanessa Gaines came forward with information about Phillips’ shooting,” said court records. “Gaines had seen a billboard near her house with a picture of Phillips and a message which read: “You know who killed me. Why won’t you help.”

Experts point to multiple motivations for citizen assistance to law enforcement. One factor, they say, can be repeat exposure to information about the crime.

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