‘First domino to fall:’ KC community sees verdict as holding police accountable
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KCPD officer found guilty in fatal shooting of Black man
Eric DeValkenaere, a Kansas City police detective, was found guilty of manslaughter on Nov. 19, 2021, in the December 2019 killing of Cameron Lamb, a Black man who was fatally shot in his own backyard. DeValkenaere was the first white Kansas City police officer in 80 years to face a criminal trial in the shooting death of a Black man.
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Members of Kansas City’s Black community and other community leaders hailed the guilty verdict in the criminal trial of a Kansas City police detective accused in the shooting death of a Black man as justice being served — at last.
Jackson County Circuit Court Judge J. Dale Youngs announced Friday afternoon that he found Eric DeValkenaere, 43, guilty of second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action in the 2019 killing of Cameron Lamb, who was fatally shot in his own backyard.
“By convicting Officer DeValkenaere, Kansas City is sending a signal to all police that the days of killing Black people with impunity are over,” said Gwen Grant, president/CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City. “They will be held accountable.”
Grant noted that criminal prosecutions of police officers for misconduct, even fatal misconduct, are extremely rare — and convictions even rarer. She commended prosecutors who pursued justice with “rigor and integrity.
“We profoundly appreciate that justice has been served by the court’s decision, but today is not a day to celebrate,” she said. “Rather, it is a time for somber remembrance of Cameron Lamb and all the lives lost to police violence. It is a time to rededicate ourselves to building a community of trust that keeps all Americans safe.”
In a two-sentence statement, Officer Donna Drake, a spokeswoman for the Kansas City Police Department, said: “Every officer involved shooting is difficult not only for the members in the community, but also the members of the police department. We acknowledge the Court’s decision.”
Jason Johnson, president of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, which provided financial support for DeValkenaere’s legal defense, said the organization was shocked and disappointed.
“Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker’s politically-motivated prosecution sets a dangerous precedent,” he said in a statement. “Police officers are not above the law but they are entitled to be held to the same standard as all citizens, not one based on political expediency.”
The shooting was frequently evoked in protests last year against police brutality and racism.
For many in the Black community, the question wasn’t only what is legally justified, but what is preventable.
Lamb, 26, was shot after officers investigating a crash reported a red pickup chasing a purple Ford Mustang. Officers in a police helicopter spotted the truck, which was driven by Lamb, and followed the vehicle.
Prosecutors said there was no evidence that anyone had dialed 911, that anyone was hurt or that a crime had taken place when DeValkenaere and another detective arrived at Lamb’s home at 4154 College Ave.
DeValkenaere testified that he had a duty to go to the backyard after receiving word that the pickup had been involved in the chase. In the process, DeValkenaere knocked over a barbecue grill and a car hood to get to the backyard.
DeValkenaere said that he fired after Lamb pointed a gun at Schwalm. Only nine seconds had passed from the time DeValkenaere had walked from the front of the residence to the back of the house.
At the heart of the trial was whether DeValkenaere’s actions were “reckless” and violated the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures.
Police investigating the shooting found Lamb inside the vehicle with his left arm and head hanging out of the driver’s side window. On the ground near his left hand was a handgun, according to police.
Prosecutors , however, alleged that the crime scene was staged and evidence was planted.
“I believe what has been achieved in this courthouse today is justice,” said Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker. “But there is no real victor in a case like this.”
She acknowledged that how people view the case has been divided, including inside the courtroom.
“I would simply say to the city and to all those who may be listening that what we sought in this case was a just outcome and I believe that’s where we stand today,” Baker said.
“There’s a somberness that comes with all verdicts because we all leave the courthouse, someone misses someone around their dining room table,” she added. “Then there’s another individual that faces punishment for the harm that’s been done.”
The Rev. Vernon Percy Howard Jr., president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Greater Kansas City, said the group celebrates the verdict.
He said the facts were indisputable in their view:
- Lamb was rightfully occupying his own property in peace;
- He was not a threat or danger to the public or police officers;
- There was no warrant presented to the victim or his family upon entering the property; and
- There were no efforts by law enforcement that did not include use of force.
Based on those facts, Lambs civil and human rights were violated and his death, from a moral standpoint, is reprehensible, Howard said.
“This verdict is a sign that justice can happen,” said Lora McDonald, executive director of MORE2, a local social justice organization. “Cameron Lamb’s life mattered. We have so much more work to do in overhauling this system but today we are grateful for a conviction.”
Darron Edwards, lead pastor of United Believers Community Church, who has been a vocal critic of Police Chief Rick Smith and the police department, said he was grateful for the verdict and upholding Lamb’s Fourth Amendment rights.
“There’s not many days in a year when an African American feels like a full citizen in this country,” he said. “Today was one of those days.”
“Reasonable suspicion” by law means detain to ascertain, Edwards said. Not the “warrior mentality” that is seen with the police department in the urban area.
“This is a direct message to Chief Rick Smith, Bishop Mark Tolbert and the Board of Police Commissioners, and Brad Lemon of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 99 that this present police leadership and culture must change immediately,” Edwards said.
As a faith community leader, Edwards questioned how he’s supposed to reconcile community trust when police take pictures of themselves passing out holiday turkeys, but the culture of policing also has him sitting with hurt families passing out Kleenex and funeral programs.
Edwards also offered payers to DeValkenaere’s family.
“I’m sure Eric got up that morning with good intentions but when a bad outcome took place, he made it worse,” he said. “Testimony and evidence showed that he made it worse. That speaks to the culture of KCPD that must be rooted out.”
The Rev. Randy Fikki, of Unity Southeast Kansas City, a church near Swope Park, said the verdict is a win, but not justice.
“Let this be the first domino to fall as we battle systemic racism in our police department and in our city,” he said.
The verdict reveals a lot about our standing on and valuing of race in Kansas City and across the nation — it’s a measurement on how far the city has come since the Emmitt Till murder and the George Floyd verdict, he said.
There is still work that has to be done, he said, and healing that needs to take place to mend the relationship between the police department and the community.
“Injustice must never be given safe harbor,” he said. “We must call it out. We must stand up and speak up against injustice.”
This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 2:09 PM.
