Operation LeGend isn’t over, and KC homicide rate continues to decrease

The “surge” portion of Operation LeGend may be complete in Kansas City, but this partnership between KCPD and our federal law enforcement partners to reduce violent crime is going to continue well into the future.

I am at a meeting of the Major City Chiefs Association today at which U.S. Attorney General William Barr is discussing Operation LeGend. Operation LeGend brought hundreds of federal agents into Kansas City to help our agency investigate violent crimes during an unprecedented increase. They helped us take dozens of murderers, and many more shooters, robbers and other perpetrators of violent crime into custody. They brought the resources of the entire federal criminal justice system to Kansas City, meaning many of those suspects now are facing federal charges and are in custody in federal detention until their trials.

The homicide rate in Kansas City has dropped precipitously since the implementation of Operation LeGend, as you can see in this chart.




The resources of Operation LeGend allowed us to investigate violent crimes and arrest suspects much faster than we would have been able to do alone. Their assistance with analysis, interviewing witnesses and suspects who have left the metro area and more have been invaluable.

Operation LeGend is not over. While we have long had a great working relationship with our federal law enforcement partners, those relationships are being enhanced. For many years, we have had several specialized squads composed of both KCPD and federal agents, and that’s growing. The FBI’s Kansas City Field Office will embed additional personnel in our Violent Crimes Division.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) also has created a new criminal enforcement group in Kansas City made up of eight agents and a supervisor. They are assigned to work full time with our Assault Squad to investigate non-fatal shootings. They work alongside our detectives here in KCPD Headquarters on things like ballistics intelligence to connect shootings and link suspects to firearms. They also are helping us charge shooters with federal gun law violations to get them off the streets as soon as possible.

There is still work to be done. The additional federal resources coming through the continuation of Operation LeGend will help us continue to hold violent offenders accountable and increase safety in our neighborhoods.

Operation LeGend is about enforcement, but we have all heard that police can’t “arrest our way out” of a violent crime issue. That’s why we’re working with faith leaders in the Getting to the Heart of the Matter initiative to address some of the root causes of crime. It’s why we partnered with churches from the Northland to the Southland this past weekend on Faith and Blue events that provided more than 45,000 meals to residents. It’s why we employ social workers and a specialized Crisis Intervention Team Squad and so much more.

The KCPD is working to address violent crime from multiple angles, and the help of both federal and community partners makes that work so much more effective. 

Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org. 

In violent year, KCPD’s homicide clearance rate remains well above average

Despite a record-high workload, the Kansas City Missouri Police Department is maintaining a clearance rate that is well above-average for homicide cases. Our solve rate is even higher.

Our clearance rate is recorded as a Uniform Crime Report (UCR) rate, as mandated by the FBI. Our UCR clearance rate is 70% today. The national average is 62%. UCR is based on casework completed this year compared to total homicides this year. It gives credit to all cases solved in 2020, regardless of whether the homicide occurred in years prior.

As of today, we have cleared 62 homicides from 2020 and 27 from previous years, for a total of 89. Just last week we identified persons of interest in two 2019 homicide cases. Our detectives and crime lab staff deserve for their work to be counted on those cases, as well, which is what UCR does. We will never stop seeking justice on unsolved homicides.

Most homicides aren’t solved like on television shows. If we don’t figure out who did it at the scene, there’s extensive work that needs to happen in the days, weeks and months that follow: witness interviews, extracting data from phones, social media analysis, video review, forensic analysis of DNA, firearms and other evidence. Those things take time. They also take people and equipment, and both of those are finite resources. All of those things are vitally important to ensure we identify the right person as a suspect and put forward a case that can successfully be prosecuted.

The violence in Kansas City this year was outpacing our capacity, despite the addition of eight additional homicide squad detectives and 12 additional assault squad detectives earlier this year. (Aggravated assaults, usually shootings, often are the precursors to homicides.)

That’s why Operation LeGend has been so helpful. By giving us additional investigators and resources, they have allowed us to conduct these investigations at a faster rate than we could have on our own. Operation LeGend is assisting not just with homicides but with all violent crimes: shootings, robberies and more. And since they have been in town, the pace of homicides and other violent crime has slowed, which is good for everyone in Kansas City.

Operation LeGend also has helped in detaining violent criminals prior to trial. Police are only the first stop in the criminal justice system. Courts, judges, prosecutors, corrections and probation and parole all have a part to play in holding accountable those who would harm others. Officers can make arrests all day, every day, but if the rest of the system doesn’t keep up, dangerous people remain in the community.

That’s why we define a case that is “cleared” differently from a case that is “solved.” Solved is what we can do. Cleared is up to other players in the criminal justice system. Solved means we have probable cause to charge a suspect for a crime. Cleared generally means that the county prosecutor’s office agreed and charged the suspect or the case was exceptionally cleared.

We currently have 14 cases submitted to prosecutors’ offices, of which 13 of these are solved - not cleared - cases. One case is cleared, but there are still additional suspects to charge. The remainders are awaiting charging decisions by prosecutors or a grand jury’s decision. If every solved case was a cleared case, we would have 102 total cases cleared this year, for an 80% solve rate.

Community cooperation continues to be vital for us in continuing to clear these cases. In so many cases, all it takes is one person coming forward. And in all homicide cases, you can remain anonymous and get a $25,000 reward.

Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org. 

We're making changes to address homicides and non-fatal shootings

While so much of our other crime is trending downward, shootings and homicides remain a persistent issue in our city. Although police are by no means solely responsible for the increase or decrease in these crimes, we are obligated to do everything in our power to address them and bring offenders to justice.

We also know we can’t work in a vacuum. It takes partnerships across the city and an evaluation of best practices nationwide to make the systemic changes needed to impact our stubborn violent crime rate. In 2019, Kansas City had 148 homicides and 491 non-fatal shootings.

A focus on prolific violent offenders

One of the places where you can see that change is happening is with the Kansas City No Violence Alliance, or KC NoVA.  KC NoVA has been and continues to be about focused deterrence, but after extensive evaluation, KC NoVA switched its enforcement strategy last year from targeting group-related violence to targeting individuals who are frequently involved in violent, gun-related crimes. This approach has seen great success in cities like Tampa, which has had a dramatic reduction in violent crime. Although the number of these violent offenders is low, they are responsible for the vast amount of our violent crime. Research from Tampa identified that 6% of their violent offenders were responsible for 60% of violent crime.

As a reminder, KC NoVA is a partnership between KCPD, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, The Jackson County Prosecutor, FBI, ATF, the Mayor’s Office and Missouri Probation and Parole. All of those partners remain at the table with us, and they are integral in reducing the gun-related crimes that plague Kansas City. We work together now more than ever.

But homicides and non-fatal shootings continue to be an issue in Kansas City, so we needed to adapt. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Public Safety Partnership spent 18 months with us evaluating NoVA and advising us on how we could move forward. The result is this new enforcement strategy that targets the trigger-pullers.

Reviewing non-fatal shootings

The Public Safety Partnership also introduced us to a best practice from police in our peer city of Milwaukee. As of January 8, we are now conducting weekly shooting review meetings. These cover all homicides and non-fatal shootings that took place in the past week and follow up on case progress from previous weeks. Again, this is driven by partnerships with state and federal prosecutors and Missouri Probation and Parole. All of the partners attend the meetings with our investigative and patrol elements to ensure each case is investigated to the best of its ability.

This new meeting of criminal justice partners emphasizes accountability: each of the partners – including KCPD – is holding each other responsible for effectively carrying out their role in the criminal justice process. This is a great improvement in communication and accountability through the whole system.

Adding investigative resources

With the dawn of the New Year, we have doubled the number of detectives assigned to work non-fatal shooting cases. All too often, many of the victims and suspects in these incidents later become victims or suspects in homicides. With 491 non-fatal shootings last year (a 9% increase from 2018), we have doubled the number of detectives in our Assault Squads from 12 to 24. They are charged with investigating cases in which someone is assaulted with a weapon but survives. 

We also have added eight homicide detectives, bringing the total number to 32.

These shifts have led to us moving resources from other places, like Mounted Patrol. That decision wasn’t popular, but it is needed to focus resources on stopping the perpetrators of gun violence in our city.

Ultimately, police can’t be there every time someone decides to resolve an argument with a gun. If you know someone who is planning violence, please let us know. We are making changes, however, to identify those most involved with gun violence, work their case to the fullest extent and ensure accountability with the help of our partners in the criminal justice system and the community.

Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org. 

KCPD thrust into national debate from ICE arrest viral video

There has been much discussion and debate surrounding the July 22 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stop that was filmed and shared on Facebook Live. I think it’s important to say upfront that the Kansas City Missouri Police Department does not do proactive immigration enforcement. That’s not our role. We do, however, respond to calls of people who need us all day, every day.

The call that came in from ICE agents asking for help on July 22 was entered into our dispatch system just like any call from the public, and officers responded as they would to any other call. We regularly assist outside agencies working in our city who ask for back-up, from sheriff’s deputies to federal agents. We don’t get to decide what calls we respond to. We just go. That’s our duty.

It is not our duty or prerogative to enforce immigration laws. Our policy clearly states, “Only immigration officers have the authority to detain and arrest suspected undocumented/unauthorized foreign nationals for violations of the immigration laws.” We are compelled by Missouri Statute 67.307, however, to “cooperate with state and federal agencies and officials on matters pertaining to enforcement of state and federal laws governing immigration.”

In the July 22 incident, several KCPD officers responded to ICE’s request for assistance regarding a man they were attempting to arrest who would not exit his vehicle. We would assist any local, state, or federal law enforcement agency who faced the same situation and had jurisdiction in our city. Responding KCPD personnel made many attempts to de-escalate the situation. You can see in the video the very respectful way the primary sergeant at the scene spoke with the man in the car and with his family after the arrest. His calming presence is part of the reason that KCPD officers respond to assist outside agencies. Our officers know their communities. They know their problems and fears. We believe the presence of KCPD personnel was a stabilizing factor in this incident.

In any high-profile incident like this, it’s important that we reach out to the members of our community and engage in discussion. As we have done before, I directed all of our Community Interaction Officers and patrol commanders to reach out to the residents with whom they work, especially our close community partners that work with immigrant communities. We want to ensure they know that KCPD did not initiate the stop in question, did not physically remove the individual from the car, nor did we take the man into our custody. We also want to assure them nothing has changed: it is not our policy or practice to conduct proactive immigration enforcement. It is our job to protect the life and property of everyone in Kansas City. Our community is safer when everyone – no matter how they got here – trusts their local police department. It would be detrimental to all of us if this incident incites fear of KCPD. Our officers are working harder than ever now to build that trust. This will come through community meetings, difficult conversations, and professional service.

We know this incident puts us in the middle of a national debate, but our job is to focus on how KCPD personnel can best serve the people of Kansas City. We will continue to review this and similar situations to ensure the process of continuous improvement to the service we provide. Other commanders and I have examined the video, just as we do with all incidents that merit a review. We continue to take the lessons learned from incidents such as this to assess our practices and policies going forward.

Meanwhile, we will continue to do what we’ve always done: respond to the calls of those who need help, no matter who they are. 

Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org. 

Giving our all to get a triple murderer into custody ASAP

We have been working diligently to combat violent crime in our city. What happened on Sunday morning was the epitome of senseless violence: in the course of about an hour, one suspect killed three people in three different places and shot two more in South Kansas City and Raytown. A 4-year-old child was among the injured. The shootings were not random and appear to be domestic violence-related. 

We immediately mobilized as many resources as possible to find and stop someone who had very quickly become a serial killer. In addition to patrol officers regularly assigned to the areas, we brought in more than 100 people - detectives from nearly all of our investigative units, Tactical Team officers, and our federal partners with the U.S. Marshals, FBI and ATF - to identify and track down the suspect. We also identified and located family members who could be potential victims and told them about what was happening so they could get to safety. Rosilyn Temple and Mothers in Charge were there comforting the loved ones of our numerous victims and helping them understand what we needed to do as police to put an end to the spate of violence. Within 12 hours, the suspect was in custody. Issac Fisher has now been charged with three counts of murder and 15 other charges.

During the course of the investigation into Fisher's location, we did something we don't do often: we asked people in the neighborhoods where we thought he might be to stay inside. We also flooded the area with police, but telling people to stay in was the best protection we could provide at the time. We know this was a scary time for some of our South KC residents, and I appreciate everyone remaining calm. I hope you know we were doing everything we could to get him into custody as quickly as possible to prevent any further violence. 

Our investigators, with assistance from the community, were able to track the suspect to a relative's house about 10:30 p.m. Sunday and took him into custody without incident. I commend the detectives and officers who gave all they had to this case. We wouldn't do this job if we didn't care deeply about the safety of our residents, and in no case was that more evident than how we came together and deployed every available resource on Sunday to find and arrest a violent individual before he could hurt anyone else.

Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org.