Family of man used as ‘human shield’ in KC police shooting approves partial settlement
A federal judge has approved a partial settlement paid by The Downtown Council of Kansas City and the area’s community improvement district to the survivors of a man killed by Kansas City police officers during a confrontation in 2018.
The partial settlement, outlined in court records filed in the U.S. District of Western Missouri, does not disclose the amount paid to the mother and father of Robert White, the 34-year old shot and killed. It also does not end legal action being pursued against the other defendants: a private security company, the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners and the officers involved in the shooting.
Lawyers representing The Downtown Council and the Downtown Kansas City Improvement District did not immediately reply to The Star’s request for comment Wednesday night.
White was killed alongside 33-year-old Tim Mosley on June 14, 2018, after police were called to Barney Allis Plaza near 12th and Wyandotte streets shortly before 5 p.m. on reports of two men fighting, one of them armed with a gun. Arriving officers shot both men dead, later describing a chaotic scene where they were unable to determine who held the gun when it was pointed in their direction.
The lawsuit filed by White’s relatives earlier this year claims he was shot 17 times while unarmed and being used as a “human shield” by Mosley. After being shot, he was allegedly dragged across the ground by his legs while bleeding profusely and placed into handcuffs.
The case was reviewed by the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office. Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker later issued a letter explaining that no criminal charges would be filed against the officers. She described White as “an innocent bystander” but said the officers were not legally responsible for his death.
“The officers had only a few seconds to make a determination of what was transpiring as it dramatically unfolded before them and to act,” said the letter, addressed to Kansas City Police Chief Rick Smith.
Police were initially sent to the area after Mosley approached a hotel manager near the plaza seeking a room. The manager described Mosley as a “suspicious individual” who said he had just been released from jail and feared “people here with guns bothering me.”
Mosley then allegedly got into a golf cart next to a Barney Allis Plaza security guard and directed the security guard at gunpoint to drive over toward White. Mosley then got out of the golf cart and attacked White, an investigation later concluded. The security guard ran away to get help.
The lawsuit claimed the Downtown Council of Kansas City, which uses funds from an area community improvement district to pay for security, was partially responsible for White’s death. By undertaking the role of providing that security, the lawsuit says, the group was duty bound to protect area patrons “in a non-negligent manner.”
This story was originally published December 30, 2021 at 7:28 AM.
