Man shot, killed by Kansas City police after he allegedly pointed gun at civilians
A man allegedly armed with a handgun was shot and killed by Kansas City police on Wednesday afternoon after officers responded to a report that he was threatening people.
Around 4:30 p.m., police officers were dispatched to the 4900 block of East 27th Street on a report of a man acting erratically and pointing a gun indiscriminately at civilians, said Sgt. Bill Lowe of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Two officers responding encountered him in the middle of 27th Street, Lowe said, and attempted to deescalate the situation by commanding him to drop the weapon. He did not obey that command, Lowe said, and one of the officers fatally shot him within moments of arriving.
After he was shot, Lowe said the officers gave the man first aid. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police identified him late Wednesday night as 43-year-old Reginald E. Byers Jr.
One witness who called 911 reported the man was walking up and down 27th Street and saw him point the gun, Lowe said. She left the area, Lowe said, and investigators were working toward contacting her for a statement.
No others were injured, according to police. The two officers involved were being put on administrative leave, an automatic action in deadly uses of force.
It was not immediately known whether the man pointed or fired the handgun at police prior to being shot, Lowe said. He said that would be part of the Highway Patrol’s investigation, which is ongoing.
Since 2020, the Highway Patrol has investigated Kansas City police shootings. On Wednesday, Lowe said investigators would interview witnesses and review footage captured by police body cameras.
Kansas City police kept the street blocked for hours after the shooting as the Highway Patrol was beginning its investigation. Chief Stacey Graves visited the scene, giving a brief statement saying she was there to “ensure cooperation, transparency and fairness in the process.”
The shooting marked Kansas City’s 52nd homicide of 2023, according to data maintained by The Star, which includes fatal police shootings. In 2022, there were 171 killings in Kansas City, the second-deadliest year on record.
Standing behind the yellow police tape on 27th Street Wednesday was Rachel Riley, president of the area’s East 23rd St. Pac Neighborhood Association. She said witnessing young people losing their lives to violence is always traumatizing for the community.
Bystanders, Riley said, told her the young man had been waving a gun before police officers shot him. She was unaware of all the particulars, she said, though she pointed to the outcome as an opportunity to reflect on how police use deadly force.
“At first people are like ‘Oh, well. They’re doing their job.’ But where do we de-escalate? Because at the end of the day, you took someone’s life. And I understand it’s a safety precaution. We didn’t want that young man to hurt anyone,” Riley said, adding “anything to not take their lives” should be done.
“We don’t know the young man’s name or anything about him right now, but many prayers to him and his family,” Riley said.
This story was originally published April 19, 2023 at 5:31 PM.
