Family of bystander killed during Kansas City police chase sues police department
Family of a 38-year-old woman who was killed two years ago in a crash stemming from a Kansas City police pursuit is suing, saying its officer violated the department’s policies for chasing suspects and the pursuit was an unnecessary public safety risk.
Rebecca L. White was killed and her young daughter was seriously injured while they were waiting at a stoplight on Kansas City’s far East Side. The car was struck by Miguel Ayala, 34, who was fleeing from a police chase that reached speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour in residential areas during rush-hour traffic.
The lawsuit was filed last week in Jackson County Circuit Court on behalf of White’s two children and her father Gary White, a retired Raytown police officer. It calls for damages related to White’s death as well as compensation for injuries her daughter suffered, who was two years old at the time of the crash.
Named as defendants in the lawsuit are the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, the five-member panel that governs the police department. Members of the board, four of whom are appointed by the governor, include President Mark Tolbert and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas.
Also named as a defendant is Officer Nicholaus Simons, the officer who chased Ayala. He was hired by the police department in June 2017 and is assigned to the Patrol Bureau, according to Officer Donna Drake, a spokeswoman for the department.
The Kansas City Police Department said it generally does “not comment on pending litigation to ensure fairness on all sides.”
The crash occurred shortly after 6 p.m. on Feb. 19, 2020. White was driving a BMW sedan that was rear-ended by Ayala at 47th Street and Raytown Road, causing the vehicle to be pushed through the intersection.
Lawyers for the family wrote in a civil petition that the crash occurred on a weeknight White was taking her child home from daycare. They say the pursuit, which began roughly 1.5 miles away in the 5100 block of Hedges Avenue, began despite “any effort to determine the necessity” and continued as Ayala drove erratically and dangerously.
The lawsuit alleges the officer “created a danger to the public by unnecessarily pursuing Ayala without any information giving him the discretion to initiate and continue the pursuit.” It also alleges that Ayala feared for his safety and would have stopped if police had backed off, and that the officer could have “ascertained his identity and arrested him at a different date and time without creating an unnecessary danger to the public.”
Police pursuits are recognized by authorities and the public as a dangerous activity that has led to some restrictions regulating the practice.
In Kansas City, for example, officers are instructed that they should only chase suspects in cases where a suspect vehicle is believed to be connected with a dangerous felony or “presents a clear and immediate danger to the safety of others.” Examples of such felonies outlined under KCPD policy include aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, murder and robbery.
Officers are also advised to seek approval from superiors in certain situations that may present a public safety risk.
Police have said officers were initially called to the situation involving Ayala by a woman who said a man she knew attempted to hit her with his vehicle, then rammed several parked cars.
In November 2020, Ayala pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in White’s death, resisting arrest and driving under the influence. He was sentenced to 18 years in Missouri prison.
This story was originally published July 27, 2022 at 9:30 AM.
