‘Our city is just brokenhearted‘: Independence mourns slain officer, civil process server
Dewayne Day’s phone exploded with messages as word spread about a shooting during an eviction in northeast Independence Thursday.
Day is a civil process server who has worked in the same role as Drexel Mack – “Big Mack,” Day called him – the Jackson County Circuit Court employee who was fatally shot during the encounter at a residence in the 1100 block of North Elsea Smith Road. The job can draw workers into fraught circumstances, Day acknowledged. Family feared the worst, thinking it could be him.
“You never know what the mental state and anxiety is of the person behind that door, especially in an eviction like that,” Day said. “They’re losing their home. You hope that it doesn’t come to what happened.”
Mack and Independence police officer Cody Allen were fatally shot, and two other police officers were also injured.
On Friday, Day and a small group gathered outside the Independence Police Department headquarters to remember, mourn, and honor the two men killed. Flowers and other small tokens of remembrance have piled up outside the police building since the shooting.
“We’re shocked,” said Samantha Harwood, Allen’s cousin. “This was so senseless. He’s got babies at home. There was no reason this had to happen this way. We’re all just in shock, very sad.”
Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker on Friday announced criminal charges had been filed against a man alleged to have fired the shots that killed Mack and Allen. Larry D. Acree, 69, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, as well as first-degree assault and armed criminal action charges. Baker said additional charges are expected as well.
At the vigil outside Independence police headquarters Friday evening, Anthony Davis, of Independence, recalled regularly bumping into Allen while he was working. He remembered one day when the kids were out in the swimming pool in the yard, and the officer stopped by, flashed the lights for them, showed them his computer, let them ask questions.
“Just doing what neighborhood cops, good cops, would do,” Davis said.
Allen would see him out on the porch, blare a horn and wave. Davis said he was devastated when he heard the news about the shooting.
“We had to come up here and show respect,” he said. “He was a good guy.”
Anne Carson, of Independence, reflected on the senselessness of the shootings, how it all could have been avoided.
“Our city is just brokenhearted,” she said.
Independence Mayor Rory Rowland relayed how Allen cherished being a father and how he had at one point built a racetrack in his backyard — complete with dirt ramps — for his son to circuit in a small electric car, so he could pretend he was a racecar driver.
“That was the kind of man that he was,” Rowland said. “His children would be incredibly proud of him, and we as a city are incredibly proud of his service.”
Earlier in the evening, East Side Church in Independence held a small prayer vigil, offering a quiet space for reflection.
“You just want to do something,” said Fred Young, the church’s lead pastor. “You can’t do anything, you feel so helpless. So as a person of faith, I said, ‘Let’s just have a place where people can just come pray together.’”
John Kampe, an Independence resident and former police officer, said he felt lost and upset and thought attending would be helpful.
“I was up all night, just upset,” he said. “Just wanted to show my support. Felt like a positive thing to come out and say some prayers.”
The Star’s Bill Lukitsch contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 2, 2024 at 6:57 AM.
