KCK Police Capt. Robert Melton’s death was not a ‘planned ambush,’ officials say

The shooting death of a Kansas City, Kan., police captain on Tuesday “does not fit the national narrative of planned attacks against law enforcement officers,” Police Chief Terry Zeigler said Wednesday.

Zeigler, Mayor Mark Holland and members of the clergy gathered to share the community’s grief over losing a second officer in the line of duty in less than three months. They also encouraged people to “rise above this fear” that has gripped the nation and pitted police against minorities who feel victimized by them.

Capt. Robert David Melton died after being shot several times while assisting his officers in an arrest after a police chase. Two people are in custody, and police were not looking for a third. Charges could be filed Thursday.

“We do not believe that Captain Melton’s death was a planned ambush against police,” Holland said at a news conference at City Hall. “We believe this case is another example of a known criminal trying to escape arrest. Yet we all need to worry that the national climate may foster greater fear and potentially inflame otherwise normal interactions and turn them into tragedies.

“This fear sometimes feels bigger than all of us. And yet I believe Kansas City, Kan., will faithfully rise above this fear.”

Melton, 46, spent a quarter century in law enforcement, including with the Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office, and was a retired captain in the Kansas Army National Guard. In his 26-year military career, he served in Iraq and Afghanistan and was awarded a Bronze Star.

“He was a professional with a big personality,” Zeigler said. “Just a big, lovable guy. Hard exterior but soft on the inside and well respected throughout our organization and the community.”

Melton, who was divorced, leaves behind three children and three stepchildren. He and his partner were expecting a child this winter. Members of the family were at City Hall for Wednesday’s news conference but chose not to speak with reporters.

Also on Wednesday, the police department announced that visitation for Melton would be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday at the Jack Reardon Civic Center.

Melton’s funeral will be held at 9 a.m. Saturday at Children’s Mercy Park, with a ceremony to follow at Leavenworth National Cemetery.

Wyandotte County Sheriff Don Ash called Melton a “true public servant” whose death is a huge loss to the entire community.

“He served his country and his community his entire life,” Ash said.

Ellen Hanson, a former police chief in Lenexa who served as interim chief in Kansas City, Kan., before Zeigler was appointed, said Wednesday she worked closely with Melton during her time with the department.

“He leaves a hole that’s going to be hard to fill,” Hanson said, describing Melton as a teacher who never missed an opportunity to help young officers do their job better and more safely.

Zeigler provided more detail about the events Tuesday that led to Melton’s death.

A caller dialed 911 about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday to report being shot at from a burgundy Grand Prix with three or four people inside near the Juniper Gardens public housing complex at Second Street and Edgerton Drive.

A short time later, an officer attempted to stop a car for driving the wrong way on a one-way street near 15th Street and Haskell Avenue. The car matched the description from the drive-by shooting, but the officer did not know that and ended his pursuit because a traffic violation wasn’t worth the risk of a chase.

Minutes later, after the vehicle description from the drive-by shooting complaint was put out over police radio, a different officer noticed it not far away at 15th Street and Rowland Avenue. Some of the occupants ran from the vehicle, but the driver, an 18-year-old man, was arrested without incident.

Melton, who was on patrol nearby, spotted one of the suspects near 22nd Street and Georgia Avenue at 1:58 p.m.

“Captain Melton sped to the suspect’s location, cutting him off or boxing him in with his police vehicle,” Zeigler said. “The suspect produced a handgun and fired several shots into the passenger side of Captain Melton’s patrol car, through the window, which was halfway down.”

Melton was taken to the University of Kansas Hospital, where he died.

Meanwhile, police set up a perimeter and arrested a 20-year-old man with no prior convictions in Wyandotte County. He is being held without bail in the Wyandotte County jail on suspicion of first-degree murder.

The driver is being held in the Wyandotte County jail, also without bond, on suspicion of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and use of a deadly weapon. The Star is not naming the men because they have not yet been charged.

The 18-year-old had four prior convictions as a juvenile, according to Wyandotte County court records. In his most recent conviction, in 2013, he pleaded guilty to battery on a school employee, according to Wyandotte County court records.

He was placed on probation with the stipulation that he “avoid negative behaviors” and receive a mental evaluation for anger management, the records show. A few months later he violated his probation and it was extended. It appears from the records that he successfully completed probation and was released from juvenile court jurisdiction.

Zeigler became emotional while speaking about Melton’s death, saying “our thin blue line got a little thinner yesterday.” But he said police would continue to do their jobs.

“Officers of the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department will continue to fight for the safety of our community and we will not apologize for confronting evil and removing it from our community,” he said. “Our citizens deserve to live in a community that is free of crime.”

Melton was an acting major in the police department’s Division 1, which includes the South Patrol and East Patrol.

“He was just on patrol, checking on his folks,” Zeigler said.

Hanson said she wasn’t surprised that Melton was out in the field Tuesday.

“He was always out there teaching,” she said. “He was one of those people who couldn’t do enough.”

This story was originally published July 20, 2016 at 10:31 AM with the headline "KCK Police Capt. Robert Melton’s death was not a ‘planned ambush,’ officials say."