One officer found dead in downtown St. Louis. St. Louis Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Hayden angrily denounced criticism of the investigation into a fatal game of Russian roulette involving two officers as “unwarranted, certainly untimely, and absolutely irresponsible.”

“It’s insane that something like this happened so close to home,” junior Hayden Thomas said.

Officer Nathaniel Hendren fatally shot officer Katlyn Alix in Hendren’s apartment in downtown St. Luis. in the presence of a third officer. They were taking turns in the game of chance: Russian roulette. Hendren was charged a day after the shooting with involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action.

“This is why gun regulation needs to be in place. People who are going through a hard time or are in a dark place do not deserve to be playing with guns. I don’t know if they did it for the adrenaline rush, but the drugs they took probably played a big part in it,” junior Jay Miles said.

Alix, who was off-duty at the time, was struck in the chest and she was pronounced dead at a hospital. Investigators believe that there were drugs or alcohol involved, which may have led to the killing.

“It’s just sad and such a risky situation. Obviously playing with guns is not okay at any point, but playing a game that has taken so many lives is just ridiculous,” junior Kelsey Powers said.

Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner has said in interviews that police officials told one of her prosecutors that a sample had been drawn. But when an investigator from her office asked if a blood sample was drawn, she said, police responded that a breath test and urine analysis had been performed, not a blood test. Alix had been on the force two years, the police department said. She leaves behind a husband, her parents, and a sister, among other family members.