Grand jury indicts Kansas City man in fatal shooting of Northland neighbor
A Clay County grand jury on Tuesday indicted a Kansas City man on a murder charge in the fatal shooting of his Northland neighbor earlier this month, court documents show.
The grand jury returned an indictment charging 42-year-old Jeffrey Traviss King with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of 41-year-old Christopher Cole Wells the morning of Jan. 12.
If convicted on the murder charge, King faces a punishment of death or life in prison without the chance of probation or parole under Missouri law, according to the indictment. He faces between three and 15 years in prison if convicted of the second charge. If it is determined that he unlawfully possessed a firearm, the minimum sentence would be five years.
King, who has pleaded not guilty, may seek a “stand your ground” defense, his attorney said earlier this month.
The grand jury indictment replaces similar charges Clay County prosecutors filed the day after the shooting.
Grand jury proceedings, which are closed to the public, replace preliminary hearings, which are open to the public, to determine whether a crime was committed and whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed it. If indicted, the defendant is bound over for trial.
King is being held in the Clay County jail on a $5 million bond. A bond review hearing for the initial charges was scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Tuesday. No hearings had been set in the new case as of Wednesday morning.
Prosecutors have asked that King, who records show runs a firearms business, be required to surrender all firearms and ammunition as a condition of being released on bond, according to court documents.
In a previous motion, prosecutors noted that Kansas City police crime scene technicians recovered 16 9mm handguns during the execution of search warrants; these matched the caliber of the weapon used in the fatal shooting.
The technicians also found multiple other long guns and handguns that they did not seize because they were of different calibers and gauges, according to court documents.
King is accused of shooting Wells during a fight around 7:30 a.m. on Jan. 12 in the 2500 block of Northeast 78th Street, in the Clay County portion of Kansas City, North. Wells, the married father of four children, died at the scene after being shot multiple times.
Neighbors told The Star that there had been a series of escalating confrontations between King and his neighbors. One neighbor said King had been holding the neighborhood hostage.
Court records show that King was found guilty of destruction of property in November in Kansas City Municipal Court and was ordered to stay away from Wells’ home. King, however, appealed the conviction.
On Jan. 12, Wells’ wife, Kirsten, was walking her dog when she saw a vehicle running on King’s property. She returned home and noticed King walking toward her and her house, a blanket in his hands.
King then allegedly tossed the blanket onto the grass in the front yard. Because of a long history of harassment, Kirsten Wells called her husband, who returned home.
King was not present when Wells first returned. Surveillance video from a neighbor’s camera showed Christopher Wells sitting on the curb across from King’s residence. King soon pulled up and got out of his vehicle.
The video showed Wells going toward King and throwing a punch that appeared to strike King on the head, according to court documents. A fight ensued. The camera’s view was blocked.
King then reemerged, followed closely by Wells. Shortly after, Wells is seen backing away from King, “apparently raising his hands as he backs away.”
The camera’s view is blocked by a vehicle as eight gunshots are heard, according to court documents.
Two juvenile witnesses told detectives they saw King shoot Wells in the back as he was lying face down on the ground, according to court documents.
