Police ID boy killed Monday as Kansas City’s youngest shooting victim this year
The young boy who was fatally injured in a shooting while he slept early Monday was 4 years old, Kansas City police said Monday afternoon.
Legend M. Taliferro was shot about 2:30 a.m. while sleeping in an apartment in the 1600 block of Bushman Road, near East 63rd Street and The Paseo, Kansas City Police Department spokesman Sgt. Jacob Becchina said in an email Monday afternoon.
Detectives believe the apartment was targeted, Becchina said.
People staying at the same apartment as the boy told police they awoke to gunshots coming from outside the home. Then they realized the boy had been shot.
On the way to the scene, officers were told a family member was driving Legend to the hospital. The child died a short time later, Becchina said.
Police have not yet received any tips in the homicide case, Becchina said Monday afternoon.
“This is a nightmare for any parent and I can’t imagine the pain with which they’re dealing this morning,” Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas tweeted Monday morning. “The boy was asleep. Malicious shooting with no regard for others claims another innocent life in our city.”
Legend is the youngest person killed by gunfire this year in Kansas City, according to data maintained by The Star.
Anyone with information about the homicide is asked to call the Kansas City Police Department’s Homicide Unit at 816-234-5043 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477).
Information leading to an arrest could be eligible for a $25,000 cash reward.
Legend’s death is the city’s 94th homcide of the year. That compares to 67 homicides reported by this time last year.
A 15-year-old girl was also fatally shot in the metro early Monday in Kansas City, Kansas, police said. She was taken to a hospital after shots were into the vehicle she was in. She later died.
Last year, the youngest victim struck by gunfire in Kansas City, Missouri, was 8-year-old Brian Bartlett. He was killed in August 2019 as he also slept in bed when more than 30 bullets ripped through his mother’s home.
Despite pleas for witnesses to come forward, his slaying remains unsolved.
Gun violence will be the subject of a new, statewide journalism project The Star is undertaking in Missouri this year in partnership with the national service program Report for America and sponsored in part by Missouri Foundation for Health. As part of this project, The Star will seek the community’s help.
To contribute, visit Report for America online at reportforamerica.org.
This story was originally published June 29, 2020 at 1:14 PM with the headline "Police ID boy killed Monday as Kansas City’s youngest shooting victim this year."
