Kansas City teen charged in shooting death of man he claimed hit his mother

A 17-year-old teen faces second-degree murder charges in the shooting of a man who died in a barrage of gunfire outside a residence at 16th Street and Elmwood Avenue.

Tony Mack Jr. of Kansas City also faces assault, armed criminal and unlawful use of a weapon in the slaying of Leon Taylor, 56, on Jan. 28. Taylor was one of two persons found wounded. Officers who arrived on the scene did not find any victims or suspects. Taylor and the other victim arrived at a hospital by private vehicle, police said.

Taylor later died from his injuries. A second victim was treated for gunshot wounds. A neighbor reported hearing five to seven gunshots.

According to court records, Mack accused Taylor of assaulting his mother.

Moments before the shooting, Mack’s mother, Taylor, the other victim and another man pulled up to the residence on Elmwood Avenue. The mother, Taylor and the two men had finished running several errands and drove to the house, according to court records.

Mack was inside the residence and spoke briefly to his mother. During their conversation, Mack noticed a scab under his mother’s nose and asked her what happened. His mother said she fell down but Mack said he didn’t believe her, according to court records.

The mother also showed Mack her knees. Mack told his mother he believed that Taylor assaulted her.

Mack walked up to Taylor, who was inside the car. He accused Taylor of hitting his mother. Mack pulled out a handgun and fired several shots into the car, striking Taylor and the one of the men, prosecutors allege.

Mack ran away as Taylor and the other men drove away.

When the mother was shown a photo of her son, she denied knowing him and became uncooperative with investigators, court records stated.

Prosecutors requested a $150,000 bond.

This story was originally published February 6, 2018 at 8:58 PM with the headline "Kansas City teen charged in shooting death of man he claimed hit his mother."