‘They’re firing!’ KC police release video of officer chasing car as shots are fired
The Kansas City Police Department has released dashcam footage showing “numerous shots” fired at an officer as he pursued a car late Thursday night.
The chase started around 9:30 p.m. after the officer tried to initiate a traffic stop.
In a news release Friday, police said the officer saw the car parked in an abandoned, overgrown business parking lot with its lights off in the area of Meyer and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. boulevards.
The driver fled when the officer tried to pull the car over.
The pursuit went through several residential neighborhoods. Throughout the chase, gunshots flashed from the car.
In the dashcam footage, released by the police department, the officer references to the sound of shots and requests assistance.
“I think they’re shooting at me now,” the officer says into his radio.
“Yup, they’re firing at me!
“They’re firing! Get me cars now!
“High-caliber weapon. They’re heading eastbound, get me some cars.”
At one point, the officer says his vehicle has been hit by gunfire.
“It’s about three black male occupants. One has a handgun. One has a high-caliber firearm. They shot my vehicle. We’re heading northbound still about to get on 71 from 63rd street,” the officer says.
Another officer on the radio asks the officer if he is injured.
“No, I don’t believe so,” he replies.
The car weaves in and out of traffic, the officer says. Speeds reach 99 mph.
After a few minutes, the car exits at 22nd Street toward Hospital Hill before it continues north on U.S. 71.
On the radio, a tactical response officer warns another police car to get out of the way as police plan to deploy “tactical vehicle intervention,” also known as a PIT maneuver, forcing the suspect car to stop.
The video switches to the point of view of a tactical response vehicle.
Police said tactical officers used the PIT maneuver, causing the car to spin out and stop at Truman Road and Locust Street. Several officers are seen jumping out of their patrol vehicles.
Three people were taken into custody shortly afterward. Police reported finding a rifle and two handguns in the car.
Police said in a tweet on Friday that charges were pending.
No one was injured in the incident, police said.
