Kansas City mayor signals support for release of video after police shooting
After a bystander video of a police shooting circulated widely over Memorial Day weekend, raising conflicting reports of whether the woman was armed, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said Tuesday that he agrees with the idea of releasing law enforcement videos sooner to assist “all parties involved.”
“I agree with many on the fact that the release of video soon after an incident would be helpful to all parties involved,” the mayor said on Twitter. “We will work with parties that would need under Missouri law to petition a judge to allow for earlier video release.”
The mayor’s comment comes four days after two Kansas City police officers shot and wounded a woman in the city’s Independence Plaza neighborhood, prompting high community scrutiny. The woman, who was suspected in an area carjacking, was hospitalized with serious injuries.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol, which is leading the shooting investigation, a standard practice for KCPD use-of-force reviews, has said there is no plan to release video footage amid the ongoing investigation. The KCPD has also declined to release the video. Under state law, police are exempt from disclosing information that is part of an active investigation.
The shooting happened Friday night in the parking lot of a Family Dollar store near the intersection of Sixth Street and Prospect Avenue. Police have said information was received over the dispatch radio of a man and woman involved with carjacking a vehicle in Kansas City, Kansas.
Kansas City police officers discovered the vehicle, which matched the description and license plate provided over the police radio, said Sgt. Andy Bell, a spokesman for the patrol. As the officers were attempting to bring those inside the vehicle into custody, the male suspect allegedly exited the driver’s side and attempted to run away.
The woman then left the passenger side of the vehicle and was shot by two officers in the parking lot. Police have said she was carrying a handgun, which was taken as evidence near the scene.
The woman was transported to the hospital with serious injuries, though her medical condition stabilized Friday night. Police have said the male suspect, who was also apprehended, was unharmed during his arrest but was taken to the hospital for an unrelated medical issue.
In the wake of the shooting, an eyewitness interviewed by The Star — Shédanja, who declined to provide her last name — said she saw no weapon in the woman’s hand before she was shot multiple times. She said she overheard the woman telling police she was pregnant when asked to get on the ground and was shot while trying to run away.
“She did not pull out a weapon on them,” said Shédanja, who shot video of the aftermath. “She did not even have a stick in her hand.”
