The Star seeks to have Overland Park cover legal fees after suing for 2018 police records
The Kansas City Star has asked a Johnson County judge to order Overland Park to pay its attorney’s fees after the newspaper filed a lawsuit seeking the release of records related to the police killing of Overland Park teenager John Albers in 2018.
“For three years, Overland Park tried to hide the fact it entered into a severance agreement with Clayton Jenison, the officer who shot and killed John Albers; then when the public became aware of the agreement, the city fought to prevent its public release,” according to The Star’s attorney, Bernie Rhodes.
“The public only got to see the agreement after The Star sued the city and this Court ordered its release,” the motion read.
The newspaper has requested Overland Park pay $43,185.50 to cover its legal fees.
In a civil lawsuit filed in October, The Star and its owner, The McClatchy Company, argued that under the Kansas Open Records Act, the resignation and severance agreement for Jenison is public record and therefore should be turned over.
The city had denied multiple requests by The Star for a copy of the separation agreement with Jenison.
Albers, 17, was shot six times as he backed out of the driveway of his family’s home on Jan. 20, 2018. Police had been called to the residence on a welfare check after 911 calls were made saying Albers was having a mental health crisis and trying to harm himself.
Jenison fired 13 shots at the teen. Albers died at the scene.
When Jenison left the department following the shooting, he was paid $70,000 in a severance agreement. He did not face charges in the killing.
The teen’s parents have fought to have the findings of the shooting investigation made public.
On Monday, attorneys for The Star alleged that Overland Park did not act in good faith and instead attempted to protect City Manager Bill Ebel and Police Chief Frank Donchez from claims of “suborning, and committing, perjury, respectfully.”
The city also lacked a reasonable basis for withholding Jenison’s severance agreement, which the city manager admitted in his deposition is an employment-related agreement, which are open under the state’s open records standards.
“Accordingly, The Star is entitled to recover its reasonable attorney’s fees and costs,” the motion said.
The Star alleges the city was not truthful on why Jenison left the police department. A month after the killing, Donchez said during a press conference that Jenison, who had not yet been named publicly, had resigned for personal reasons.
However, in its court filing, The Star said the Overland Park mayor said “everyone agreed, we didn’t want (Jenison) as a police officer anymore.” To do so, “we negotiated to get the agreement signed by him, to get him out.”
Two weeks after the shooting, Jenison entered a severance agreement with the city. Jenison was paid $70,000.
In its filing, The Star said that its legal counsel charged the newspaper substantially less that what other attorneys would have charged. The newspaper paid an amount that is “fair and reasonable.”
“Put simply, Overland Park allowed the fox (City Manager who denied The Star’s request) to guard the hen house (the severance agreement the city manager signed),” Rhodes said. “Unfortunately, the City Manager had every incentive to hide the evidence of his subornation of perjury contained in that Agreement.”
“It was only due to the tenacity of The Star in pursuing this lawsuit — and the wisdom of this Court in ordering the release of the Agreement — that the truth has been revealed.”