Judge won’t drop charges against Wyandotte County candidate who shot her contractor
A Wyandotte County jury may have to decide whether political candidate Lisa Walker-Yeager should be convicted of a felony after she shot her contractor in the back last year, a district judge said Friday.
Should the case go to trial, that jury’s verdict wouldn’t come until weeks after the Nov. 4 general election that will determine if Walker-Yeager snags spots on either of the two local boards she’s running for.
Wyandotte County District Court Judge Michael Russell denied Walker-Yeager’s motion, which requested she be immune from prosecution on the basis of self defense, during a Friday afternoon hearing. She will now be arraigned for, and potentially go to trial for, criminal charges of aggravated battery and unlawfully discharging a weapon in city limits.
The local candidate, who wants seats on the boards governing the Board of Public Utilities and the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, will plead “guilty” or “not guilty” on Nov. 13 during a 1 p.m. hearing.
Walker-Yeager has maintained throughout the state’s year-long case against her that she shot the contractor, Noble Bey, in an attempt to save her daughter, Vern’e McClelland’s, life.
A dispute between Bey, Walker-Yeager and McClelland allegedly broke out on an evening in October 2024 over Bey’s frustrations with what Walker-Yeager paid him for work on her home. Walker-Yeager paid Bey $350 for the work, although Bey had been expecting $410, according to a video played during an August hearing that showed him vocalizing said frustrations to the two.
Walker-Yeager and McClelland testified in August that the dispute became violent when Bey pulled McClelland from her vehicle and began to beat her. At one point, Walker-Yeager said she thought Bey was reaching into his vehicle for a weapon, which is why she shot at him.
“The defendant had difficulty moving while hearing and watching her daughter scream for help and be in distress. Firing the gun was the defendant’s only choice to immediately put an end to the attack by Mr. Bey,” according to findings, facts and conclusions filed by Walker-Yeager’s attorney.
Bey, however, testified that he never threatened either of them verbally or brandished a weapon, according to the state’s findings, facts and conclusions filed in September.
“The victim also testified that he never had any threatening physical contact with Ms. (McClelland) but did attempt and ultimately knocked a phone out of the hand of Ms. (McClelland),” according to court documents filed by the state.
State prosecutors refused Walker-Yeager’s request for immunity on the basis of self defense. They say Bey at no point had a weapon on him during the incident.
“It was the defendant who possessed a firearm and shot the victim in the back while attempting to leave the scene,” according to the state’s findings, facts and conclusions.
Police arrested Walker-Yeager after the incident, although she is currently free from custody after making bond.
Walker-Yeager is specifically seeking the Unified Government’s District 1 seat, currently held by Commissioner Gayle Townshend, as well as the BPU’s at-large Position 1, currently held by Mary L. Gonzales.
Since her campaign began, Walker-Yeager took to social media to tell residents that she stands by her self defense claim.
People who are convicted of a felony are not permitted to hold office in Kansas until after they serve their full sentence, including probation and parole. This means if Walker-Yeager is found guilty, she’d likely not be able to serve on any public seat she could be elected to hold.
This story was originally published October 10, 2025 at 3:49 PM.
