Last week, I told you how dangerous the most routine call can be for police officers. Today, we’re releasing video of a fatal police shooting that started out as a seemingly mundane call about a non-injury car crash.
At about 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 6, 2009, police responded to a non-injury, one-vehicle car crash near 113th Street and Sycamore Terrace in south Kansas City. They found out the driver had walked away about 100 yards into nearby Isler Park. One officer drove into the park to contact the man, and as you will see in these videos from police car dash-cams, the man suddenly turned and started firing shots at the officer. The officer fell to the ground behind his patrol car door to avoid being hit. At that time, a second officer arrived and ran to assist the first officer, risking being shot himself. The officers soon returned fire on the suspect, who continued to point a gun at them even after he had been shot and fallen to the ground. The suspect died from the return shots from the officers. Miraculously, neither of the officers was injured.
On Nov. 20, a Jackson County Grand Jury cleared the officers of any wrong-doing in the suspect’s death. We were notified of this decision on Monday, Dec. 7.
I am releasing this video to show you the dangers KCPD officers face daily. We also are committed to being transparent. No officer ever wants to kill another human being, but as you can see in the video, sometimes they are left with no choice.
WARNING: This video contains disturbing images and is not suitable for children. There is audio in the second half of the video.
The weather certainly made this morning a rough drive to work for many people around Kansas City. Consider these numbers:- From 7 to 9 a.m. today, Dec. 9, we had 43 non-injury car crashes and 3 injury crashes.
- Compare that to yesterday, when from 7 to 9 a.m. we had just 13 non-injury crashes and 3 injury crashes.
These numbers account only for calls on which police were dispatched in the city limits of Kansas City, Mo. These do not include the number of accident reports that were walked into the stations.Speaking of, during road conditions like this, if you get into an accident and your car is driveable and you can safely exit the scene, please exchange information with the other car's driver and walk the report in to the nearest police station. As you can see, police were very busy this morning responding to 46 crashes in a two-hour period, and the more of them we can keep available to assist in serious emergencies, the better.Please be careful out there.Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org
PRESS RELEASE:
Kansas City Missouri Police have rescheduled the next Women’s Personal Safety Seminar for 8 a.m. to noon Jan. 9, 2010, at the Kansas City Regional Police Academy, 6885 N.E. Pleasant Valley Rd.
The seminar had previously been set for Dec. 12. That class is cancelled.
The four-hour seminar focuses on awareness, prevention, streetwise caution and self defense. Kansas City Police Academy instructors and other KCPD officers teach the class, which features one hour in the classroom learning practical crime prevention tips and three hours on mats in the gym learning self defense techniques. The four-hour course costs $25 and is open to women and girls 12 and older throughout the metropolitan area. To register, fill out this registration form and follow the instructions for sending it in.
After the first Women’s Personal Safety Seminar on Nov. 14, participants were asked to fill out evaluation forms on the course. Here’s some of what they said:
• “Very practical, very professional training. … I liked both sessions – classroom and gym.”
• “Extremely beneficial – it means more to me coming from KCPD.”
• “It made me aware of the fact that I don’t have to a victim.”
• “The format was terrific. I will definitely recommend it to others.”
• “I feel more prepared for situations that I hope I never have to be in.”
For more information on the Women’s Personal Safety Seminar, call the Academy at 816-413-3500.
A few things to note here:First, the meetings will take place at the Police Academy, not at Police Headquarters. Second, an Audit Committee meeting will precede the regular business meeting. And third, the business meeting is more of a planning/strategizing session than a policy-setting one. The meetings are, as always, open to the public. Kansas City, Missouri Board of Police Commissioners
Audit Committee Agenda
Date and Time: Thursday, December 10, 2009, 8 am
Location: Training Division, 6885 N.E. Pleasant Valley Rd., KCMO
1. Gary White, City Auditor
2. Chief Corwin
3. Deputy Chief Nichols
4. Thomas Gee, Manager, Internal Audit Unit.
a. Completed audits for presentation and release:
i. Preventable Vehicular Audit, 09-01
ii. Grant Overtime Post Audit, 09-05
b. Audits in progress (informational):
i. Records Unit Audit, 08-11
ii. Supply Unit Inventory Audit, 08-07
iii. Vehicle Pursuit Process Audit, 09-03
iv. Communications Support Unit Post Audit, 09-06
c. Audits assigned but not yet started (informational):
i. OGC Post Audit, 08-09
ii. Use of Force Information Usage Audit, 09-02
iii. Buy Money Post Audit, 09-04
5. Comments from Chief Corwin
6. Comments from Deputy Chief Nichols
7. Comments from Commissioner McInerney.
8. Comments from Commissioner Zobrist.
Board of Police Commissioners Business Session Meeting Agenda
Thursday, December 10, 2009
8:30 a.m. – Regional Police Academy
1. Scheduled Meetings:
Board Meetings:
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2009
9:00 a.m., 6th Floor, Board Room
Business Session:
Friday, January 8, 2009
8:30 a.m., 6th Floor, Board Room
2. Approval of Minutes.
a. October 8, 2009 Business Session.
b. October 27, 2009 Board Meeting.
3. Deputy Chief Rachel Whipple – Administration Bureau.
a. Request for Proposal, Occupational Health Services.
b. General Discussion.
4. Strategic Planning Session.
a. Performance.
b. Communications.
c. Community Satisfaction/Involvement.
d. Internal Elements.
e. Legislative Issues.
5. Board Goals.
a. Commissioner Orientation Process.
b. Commissioner Continuing Education.
c. Effective Governance.
6. Motion to go into Closed Session.
We're coming into some of the coldest days this season, and our property crimes detectives know exactly what that means: an increase in stolen cars.As the chill of winter sets in every year, people try to warm up their vehicles or leave them running unattended. This is a perfect target for car thieves, and it's against the law. In Kansas City, Mo., you can be ticketed for leaving your car running unattended. While this can happen at home as your car runs in your driveway, it's even more likely to take place when you're out running errands. We see far too many people who decide to leave their car running while they pop into a convenience store, only to come back outside and find it stolen. Our detectives have encountered several thieves who actually wait outside convenience stores for just such an opportunity. And if you think locking your vehicle's door while you leave it running will protect it from theft, you're wrong. It only takes a few extra seconds for a thief to break out the window. I know it's unpleasant to get into a cold car, but it's a lot more unpleasant to have your car stolen or be written a ticket because you left it running unattended.
On Nov. 27, a Jackson County Judge orally dismissed a murder case against a man charged with the 2007 homicide of Eliseo Thomas. Judge Robert Schieber said he did so because KCPD Detective Danny Phillips testified that he had known the defendant prior to this case. Judge Schieber said this was prejudicial. You can read more about what happened in this Kansas City Star article.
A formal, written order was issued yesterday in Jackson County Circuit Court dismissing the case, concluding that Det. Phillips “intentionally provoked defense counsel into requesting a mistrial.”
The basis for this conclusion was the Judge’s view that Detective Phillips responded to a question inappropriately while on the witness stand. Based on the facts provided to me and after talking to Detective Phillips, I respectfully disagree with the Judge’s characterization of the testimony. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the conduct of the detective on the witness stand was not intentional but rather a miscommunication that led to this unfortunate result. Although there was an opportunity to clarify the detective’s testimony, no testimony was elicited by the lawyers present to clarify what the Judge characterized as his inappropriate response to the question asked by the defense counsel. It is my belief that a simple follow-up question to Detective Phillips would have clarified his answer and eliminated any question about the detective’s response. It is our hope that the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office will pursue an appeal of the ruling.
Although it is always regrettable when any case is not successfully prosecuted, the men and women of the Kansas City Missouri Police Department strive to be highly professional, adhere to the rules of our courts and provide the best quality service to the citizens of Kansas City, Missouri each and every day.
At approximately 9 p.m. yesterday, Dec. 1, officers were called to 54th and Lydia to meet Rockhurst University Security on an ambulance call.
Upon arrival, officers observed the victim, a young black male, to be unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim has been identified as 17-year-old Nelson E. Hopkins Jr. of Kansas City, Mo. Detectives believe that Nelson had left the Plaza Library and took a bus to 54th and Troost just prior to the shooting. He was walking home on 54th Street when he was shot.
Anyone who may have observed Nelson or people following Nelson on the bus or after he got off the bus is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.
Members of our department serve the community both on and off-duty. I wanted to highlight some of them who are doing great work through their churches that were recently noticed by local newspapers.The first are Administrative Assistant Irene Munoz in the Patrol Bureau Office and Captain Rick Smith in the Research and Devlopment Division. They did a great deal to assist with the National Catholic Youth Conference that was in town last month. Check out what they did in The Catholic Key. The second is Detective David Reyburn in the Forgery Section. He helps feed the hungry in eastern Jackson County, as noted in this Independence Examiner story. There are some very caring and faithful people on this department, and I'm proud to be among them.
My heart aches today for our law enforcement brothers and sisters in Lakewood, Wash. Four of their officers were senselessly and violently killed Sunday morning awaiting the start of their shift at a coffee shop. The suspect who did these awful things can no longer hurt anyone else, but that won’t bring those deceased officers back and is cold comfort to their families.
Like so many of our officers, those Lakewood officers were parents. They also were sons and daughters, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, and friends, and they will be sorely missed. We grieve with our police family in Washington as they work through this excruciating time.
It also makes me reflect on just how dangerous being a police officer is, whether in a large, urban department like ours or a small, suburban department like that in Lakewood, Wash. Kansas City Missouri Police have been fortunate enough not to lose an officer in the line of duty since 2001, but there have been many close calls since then. Sunday’s tragedy is a grim reminder that officers must always be on guard. The simplest call could turn into a life-and-death situation. In this case, the officers were just doing paperwork in a coffee shop. The article in today’s Kansas City Star discusses how some of our officers are feeling right now.
You may have run across officers who seem stand-offish or don’t readily engage in conversation. This is because they must constantly be alert. Most of them really are wonderful, friendly people, but they are trained to focus on safety first. Nonetheless, most also would readily lay their life on the line to protect yours. The next time you see a police officer, from Kansas City or Lakewood, Wash., or anywhere else, please thank him or her for the life-risking sacrifices they take every day. Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org
Our Third Quarterly Homicide Report is now online and ready for viewing. It's a very detailed statistical analysis of the 89 homicides we had in the first three quarters of this year - through Sept. 30. (We're at 104 homicides to date this year, compared to 122 this time last year).The report contains statistics you would expect about things like gender and race of victims, but it has other information, too. Like that most murders this year have taken place on a Monday. Or that 75 percent of victims in 2009 have had a criminal record. It also includes detailed maps of aggravated assault hotspots and where homicides have taken place throughout the city.Send comments to kcpdchiefblog@kcpd.org
