ST. LOUIS – A father whose teenage son was killed after testifying against a killer said his son should’ve had more police protection.
He told 5 On Your Side what happened to his son is exactly why many are afraid to help the police.
James Scales Jr., 16, was killed standing at a bus stop in September a block away from his house.
"Shot him like 16 times,” James Scales Sr. said. “He ran home and he collapsed in his mother's front room."
A mother watched her son die, only because he witnessed another murder. Prosecutors said Scales Jr. testified in court that Keith Graham was the one who killed his friend in December of 2016.
Scales Sr. said his son knew there would be consequences for his testimony.
"He knew he was going to die. He planned his funeral,” he said.
According to court documents, Graham offered money for someone to kill Scales Jr. Investigators heard it all because Graham arranged it on a jailhouse phone.
"So, they had his address and they knew where he stayed at and everything,” he said.
On Thursday, Scales Sr. learned prosecutors charged Graham and three others for his son's murder.
"A lot of stressed relieved,” he said.
He praises police for the arrests of his son's killers, but he believes his son should have been in protective custody.
"He would still be here today," Scales Sr. said.
Now, all he can do is hang on to memories of his son.
"He was a hero,” he said.
And send a message to St. Louis' youth: get an education, get a job and get out of the streets.
"For these kids, that street stuff ain’t nothing,” he said. “It leads you to jail or hell. That's what my mom always told me, jail or hell."
Scales Sr. said he hopes his son's death makes police rethink how they protect witnesses.
