Case of Northland man charged in murder of KC neighbor pulled from public view
To the dismay of neighbors in a Northland neighborhood where a yearslong feud turned deadly last month, the case against Jeffrey King will no longer be online to view.
In an email Monday morning, a spokesperson with the Clay County Prosecutor’s office said the status of the case has changed.
“Please be advised that The Court, on their own motion, raised the security level of the case, therefore it is no long(er) visible to the public,” wrote Cher Conquer, community and media engagement specialist with the prosecutor’s office.
Documents, scheduled hearings and other information regarding civil and criminal cases in Missouri are often easily accessible through the state online system, known as Case.net. Information in the King case, however, went offline on Friday.
“Security levels are determined by the judge,” Conquer explained. “When confidential information about witnesses and victims is contained in a number of documents filed on a case, the judge may increase the security setting on casenet.”
Security levels can also be increased to keep potential jurors from seeing case information in the likelihood that a case will go to trial.
One neighbor questioned Monday morning how those in the neighborhood would know when the upcoming hearings in the case are scheduled.
Residents and neighbors looking to follow King’s criminal case or find out information about future court dates can call the county court’s criminal department at 816-407-3860, Conquer said. They can also contact Division 1 at 816-407-3910 or send email to div1@circuit2.net.
The next hearing is scheduled for March 27th at 9 a.m. in the Division One courtroom of Judge Shane T. Alexander, who is presiding over the case.
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King, 42, was charged on Jan. 12 with one count of first-degree murder and one count of armed criminal action in the shooting death of his neighbor, Christopher Cole Wells, 41. King has pleaded not guilty and is currently in Clay County custody in lieu of payment of $2 million cash bond. The bond, initially set at $5 million cash, was lowered last week in a hearing before the judge,
Officers responded to the shooting about 7:30 a.m. that Monday and found Wells lying in the street in the 2500 block of Northeast 78th Street. King is accused of shooting Wells eight times after Wells allegedly confronted King outside his home and punched him in apparent defense of his wife.
King’s attorneys, Nicholas Bates and Matthew Merryman, have suggested that they may seek a “stand your ground” defense, arguing that King, who has no criminal record, was “ambushed” by Wells and that King fired on Wells only after Wells waited for and attacked King at his car soon after King arrived home after dropping his sons off at school.
Neighbors and friends of Wells — some wearing “#JusticeForChris” T-shirts — have packed the Clay County court for hearings since the shooting, both in support of the Wells’ family, but also fearful that should King make bail would seek retribution against those speaking out against him.
Many in the neighborhood had complained for years about King, filing scores of complaints about him to their Homeowners Association, to 311, to Kansas City Police, City Hall and the mayor, all of whom insist they responded as best as the law allowed.
The Star reached out to Alexander by phone and email asking the judge to expand on his decision to secure the case from public view. The Star did not receive an immediate response. Merryman, King’s attorney, made no comment regarding the change in status.
This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 12:30 PM.
