Nelson E. Hopkins Jr. was 17 when he was shot and killed on the evening of December 1, 2009, while walking home in Kansas City after visiting the Plaza Library. He had taken a bus to 54th Street and Troost Avenue and was continuing on foot when he was confronted near 54th Street and Lydia Avenue, a short distance from Rockhurst University. Police described the incident as a robbery; campus security found him unresponsive and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Detectives canvassed the area for witnesses and appealed to the public through a TIPS Hotline, but investigators encountered a lack of cooperative witnesses. By late 2010 the homicide remained unsolved and no suspects had been taken into custody. If anyone knew Nelson, saw him that night, or has information about the robbery, please come forward to help bring answers to his family.