‘It’s time for justice’: KC rally calls for prosecutor accountability, transparency
Reginald Griffin was convicted of capital murder in 1988. He was imprisoned for decades, spending time on death row, before he was exonerated and his name was cleared.
“It was a nightmare,” he said at a rally in downtown Kansas City on Wednesday. “The prosecutor hid evidence from our side that had they disclosed this evidence, there never would have even been a trial.
“Instead of seeking the truth, they’re seeking a conviction.”
While the recent protests that have swept through Kansas City have focused on police brutality and pushed for reform, activists gathered Wednesday calling for prosecutor accountability.
Latahra Smith, an organizer with the KC Freedom Project, spoke about Ricky Kidd, who was exonerated last year after 23 years in prison for a double murder in Kansas City he did not commit.
The prosecutor in his case, Amy McGowan, retired from the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office one month after Kidd’s case was dismissed.
During her time as a prosecutor in Kansas, she made improper comments five times during closing arguments, the Kansas Supreme Court found.
Smith called on Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker to review cases McGowan had handled.
“We need prosecutor accountability and transparency here with our local prosecutor’s office,” Smith said. “We have far too many Jackson County, Missourians who are languishing within the Missouri Department of Corrections for crimes they did not commit.”
In a statement, the prosecutor’s office said they had reviewed other cases prosecuted by McGowan.
“We have cooperated with all inquiries from other agencies regarding her cases,” the statement said.
Smith said she was “disappointed” that Peters Baker was invited to the event, but did not attend.
Protesters also denounced the prosecutor’s office for not filing charges in incidents involving police.
They cited the cases of Donnie Sanders, who was unarmed when he was fatally shot by police in March, and Cameron Lamb, who was killed in his backyard in December.
“It’s time for justice for Cameron Lamb,” said Sheryl Ferguson, with the organization It’s Time 4 Justice.
The prosecutor’s office said some cases involving police shootings remain under active investigation, but did not specify which cases those were.
The office has previously criticized the police department for withholding probable cause statements in cases involving officers. The department will reverse course on that policy, Mayor Quinton Lucas said last week in the wake of the protests.
Jae Moyer with Equality Kansas of Metro KC spoke about Breonna Hill, a transgender woman who was arrested by two officers in May 2019.
The incident was caught on a video which shows the officers slamming Hill’s head on the ground and placing one of their knees on her neck.
The two officers were charged with fourth-degree misdemeanor assault.
“Justice was not served,” Moyer said.
Hill was killed in an unrelated homicide in October.
Activists also spoke about racial disparities in sentencing and called for the statue of Andrew Jackson in front of the courthouse to be removed.
The prosecutor’s office said it has been engaged in efforts for police reform, including supporting independent reviews of all officer-involved incidents as well as community policing.
“The Prosecutor’s Office does have a tremendous role within the criminal justice system and we don’t take that responsibility lightly,” the statement said.
It went on to say that Peters Baker had spoken at a Black Lives Matter protest last week.
Her office also launched a website where protesters could submit complaints of excessive force by officers who patrolled more than a week of protests at the County Club Plaza and other locations throughout Kansas City. The police used pepper spray multiple times on protesters and deployed tear gas on three consecutive nights.
This story was originally published June 10, 2020 at 4:41 PM.
