Special prosecutor set to review fatal Kansas City police shooting of Malcolm Johnson
A special assistant prosecutor from St. Louis County has been appointed to determine whether criminal charges will be filed in the March 25 fatal police shooting of Malcolm Johnson.
Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker filed a four-page motion requesting a judge appoint a special prosecutor due to a potential conflict arising from prior criminal cases that involved Johnson, who was shot inside of a gas station convenience store at 63rd Street and Prospect Avenue.
“An assessment of Mr. Johnson’s history raises concerns for the neutrality of the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office to review the file,” according to the motion. “Through this request the prosecutor’s office seeks to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest on a matter of such high community concern.”
The special prosecutor will determine whether the shooting was justified or not under Missouri law.
St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell’s office has appointed Rachel Smith as special prosecutor.
Chris King, a spokesman for Bell, said in an email to The Star: “We will do a fair, impartial and thorough review of this matter. At this time we have no additional information to provide.”
Smith previously served as the chief trial assistant in the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s office.
In the court filing, Baker’s office cited various prior legal cases where a judge allowed one be appointed due to a potential conflict.
In 2014, Baker’s office charged Johnson in the killing of Monteario Hogan, who was found shot to death behind the Family Dollar store at 5242 Blue Ridge Blvd. Three years later, Johnson pleaded to reduced charges of involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action.
Before the convenience store shooting, police had identified Johnson as a suspect in a nonfatal shooting that occured March 15. On March 25, officers confronted Johnson inside of the gas station convenience store where they attempted to arrest him.
An altercation ensued between Johnson and the officers. One officer was wounded in the leg during the struggle with Johnson.
The Missouri Highway Patrol said it concluded its investigation of the shooting and forwarded the findings to Baker’s office. The prosecutor’s office received the case file of the shooting from the Missouri Highway Patrol early last month.
Authorities said Johnson drew a weapon and shot an officer while he resisted arrest inside the gas station. An officer returned fire, killing Johnson, authorities said.
But a pair of videos surfaced by a group of faith leaders several weeks later that challenged the law enforcement narrative of the shooting. The videos appeared to show Johnson heavily restrained by Kansas City officers as he was being arrested, raising doubt among some about the series of events provided by a highway patrol spokesman.
One surveillance video from inside the gas station showed two officers enter with their weapons drawn as Johnson is standing at the front counter, scratching off a lottery ticket. He tries to run away, the video shows, but the officers grab Johnson and take him to the floor.
A second video obtained by faith leaders appears to be filmed with a cellphone from behind the store counter. The video showed five police officers struggling with Johnson for nearly three minutes before three gunshots are heard.
It is difficult to determine from the video alone the order of the gunshots or their origin.
Community activists, faith leaders and police use of force experts have criticized the way Kansas City police are seen handling the arrest — entering the store with their firearms drawn. Johnson was never given the opportunity to surrender and innocent bystanders were placed in danger, experts told The Star.
Kansas City police said they were trying to arrest Johnson for a shooting that happened 10 days earlier. Johnson was accused in a shooting that happened March 15 in the 9700 block of East 43rd Street. In that shooting, a bullet grazed the foot of a man at a residence there.
This story was originally published August 24, 2021 at 5:44 PM.
