NewsPinellas County

Actions

Neighbors react to St. Pete man charged with murder after shooting wife, chasing after ambulance she was in

The man is being charged with first degree murder.
St. Pete man charged with murder
Posted at 5:22 PM, Apr 18, 2024
and last updated 2024-04-19 05:49:42-04

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — A local man is being charged with first-degree murder. According to St. Pete Police, 28-year-old Devin Hansen shot his wife and then chased after the ambulance that she was in.

"As I was going to bed all of a sudden there all these lights flickering through the windows, so I come out and all my neighbors are out and we are all looking down the block and we see four or five cop cars," said Dorothy Lehner, who lives in St. Pete.

Dorothy Lehner has lived in St. Pete's Holiday Park Neighborhood for years. She said she woke up Thursday morning to a shocking scene just three doors down from her home.

"It was scary because when we woke up this morning, the cops were still there, and they had the crime scene tape, and it's like, oh my, what could that have been?" said Lehner.

St. Pete Police said a couple was visiting relatives in a home along 29 Avenue North when they got into an argument on Wednesday night.

Officials said that's when Devin Hansen shot his wife, 35-year-old Yasmin Grijalva.

She was critically injured and then rushed to the hospital.

"Oh my God, four houses away from me? I said, 'This never happens!' So, I was shocked. I still am shocked," said Lehner.

Investigators said while Grijalva was in that ambulance, Hansen chased behind it in a black Cadillac.

Officers tried to stop him, and eventually, the Cadillac crashed near 54th Avenue South.

Officials say Hansen was arrested. His wife died.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I think somebody got killed," said Lehner.

Neighbors said the area is typically quiet and peaceful, but after the shooting, they are on edge.

"I think this will make the neighborhood not wary, but more looking out for each other and if something looks strange, you know, 'hey did you see this? did you see that?' Just to make things more wary," said Lehner.

St. Pete Police said they are still investigating, and Hansen is being charged with first-degree murder, fleeing and eluding, and domestic battery.

"You never leave that feeling, you never forget that sight, and a lot of people will be shocked, and I hope they seek the care of some counseling and mental health to get them through that," said Lehner.

When we last met Deborah Dorbert, she was grappling with Florida's abortion law forcing her to carry a baby with zero chance of survival to term. Now, she describes the experience in her own words as Florida enacts one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country.

Life and loss in 94-minutes: A mom’s experience of Florida’s strict abortion ban