Subject: Kansas City Police Department

• Should It, Now?

  April 30, 2007

• Daily Briefs: Tough Day For Fetuses, Sprint's People Woes, American Stupid Idol

  January 18, 2008

• "Hypnotized" Tour Disappoints

  May 6, 2008

• A funeral for the forgotten

  September 24, 2008

• Breakfast Buffet: Monday, 6/01

  Coming face to face with a wheat allergy is scary when you realize just how many things you have to give up. [Reality is not My Friend]Several interesting places to eat lunch in central Johnson County. Yes, such places do exist. [JJs in KC]Some brazen $2 rule-breaking is going on at Power & Light District, committed by none other than the Kansas City Police. [KC Beer Blog]How low can you go? Creating a wonderful meal for four and keeping the price below $10. [NPR]

  June 1, 2009

• Daily Briefs: Repent, scientists

  By CHRIS PACKHAM Gotta keep the devil way down in the hole: If you're like me, you spend a lot of time sitting in your darkened kitchen drinking Taster's Choice and listening to the police scanner, and you smell so strongly of Aqua Velva that you can see wavy blue-colored odor-lines wafting from your torso. And, thanks to the police scanner, you know that life in parts of Kansas City is terrifying and dangerous. Unfortunately for people who like numbers, such as Nate Silver and Jimmy the Greek,

  November 24, 2008

• Best Law-Abiding Athlete

  October 19, 2000

• Best Getaway Cars

  October 17, 2002

• KCPD's sobriety checkpoints: now more surprise-y

  You know what was great about the Kansas City Police Department's sobriety checkpoints? They used to send us press releases announcing exactly what day, time and place that they'd be delaying drivers. "Friday night, Midtown Kansas City," the release would say, which usually meant the Westport area, where the drunks pour out onto Southwest Trafficway or Broadway. Or "Saturday night, South Kansas City," which often meant Ward Parkway. If they were going to do one on 71 Highway, they'd tell us. Not

  February 4, 2009

• Not surprising but sad news: Pernice case is a "death investigation"

  Renee PerniceProsecutors are now calling the Renee Pernice missing-person case a "death investigation." The case has sounded destined for Dateline -- troubled marriage, husband making inconsistent statements, mystery woman. Just keep the story away from Keith Morrison, OK?Update: The Kansas City Police Department says Pernice's family will announce a $25,000 reward later today. Here's the number to call, 816,474-8477.

  February 5, 2009

• Killa City: Police investigating double homicide outside strip club

  Kansas City Police found two men shot to death outside a strip club early this morning. The men -- both black and about 30 years old -- were found in a parking lot shared by Gerry's Silver Slipper and an O'Reilly Auto Parts store. View Larger Map Officers arrived at the intersection of Independence Avenue and Van Brunt Boulevard at 3:30 a.m. They witnessed a black man drop a gun and run. They ran him down and took him into custody. In January, three men were stabbed outside of Gerry's. KCTV

  February 6, 2009

• Killa City: Police find two more bodies

  The Kansas City Police found two more people shot to death this afternoon. Police arrived at the 1800 block of Paseo around 2:15 p.m. View Larger Map Witnesses tell the police that the blue Pontiac Grand Am was parked in a lot for two days. Anyone with info should call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.

  February 6, 2009

• Killa City: Man found shot to death near Gregory and Askew

  Kansas City Police found the body of a black man shot to death in a car near Gregory Boulevard and Askew Avenue last night at around 7:30. View Larger Map Police say witnesses saw two black men in all black clothing and hooded sweatshirts in the area at the time of the shooting. No suspects are in custody.Crime Scene KC fills in a few blanks. The man was in his 50s and found in the driveway of a home on Gregory. Also, when police arrived, two men ran from the scene.

  February 13, 2009

• Killa City: Gun beats taser

  The owner of Grow Your Own Hydroponics shot a would-be robber Sunday evening after being threatened with a taser. Kansas City Police say the store's owner told them that a man had a taser and was threatening to rob his store at 3615 St. John Avenue when he grabbed a gun and shot the guy at least once. View Larger Map The wounded robber fled.Later, police received a call saying a SUV matching the description of the suspect's vehicle had flipped at St. John Avenue and Benton Boulevard. A man ma

  February 16, 2009

• DUI checkpoint nabs how many?

  A quick update to the Kansas City Police Department's more surprise-y sobriety checkpoints. The latest one was set up at 4040 Main Street from 11 p.m. Friday to 4 a.m. Saturday. View Larger Map Officers stopped 663 vehicles and arrested 12 people on suspicion of driving under the influence. Arrest rate: 1.8 percent.

  February 16, 2009

• Is this the guy who blew up the Hereford House?

  Since the explosion at the Hereford House restaurant at 20th and Main last October, breaks in the case have been scarce as a vegan in a butcher shop. Anyway, thanks to every business at that intersection videotaping every other business and surrounding parking lot, we finally have a picture of the suspected arsonist. After the jump, more photos of the suspect and video from today's news conference.

  February 24, 2009

• Sorry, your check -- and maybe your identity -- was stolen. Please send another check.

  A couple of weeks ago I got this letter from the Missouri Department of Revenue. What do they mean my check was stolen? How does a check get stolen from the Kansas City license office? And what's this oh-by-the-way shit about my identity possibly being stolen, too? I wanted answers, but they were hard to come by.

  March 13, 2009

• Killa City: Man found fatally shot on Maple

  Kansas City Police responded to a shooting in the 4400 block of Scarritt Avenue last night, but the shooting victim had left the scene. View Larger Map Detectives talked with a couple of witnesses at the scene, and then started canvassing the area for the man -- a black man in his mid-20s. They found him shot to death in a vehicle at 305 Maple St. View Larger If you have info about the shooting, call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.Cedric J. DentUpdate (4:13 p.m. Tuesday, March 3): Kansas

  March 3, 2009

• Killa City: Three dead after weekend shootings

  The early hours of Saturday morning started a bloody day in Kansas City. A 17-year-old high school basketball player was gunned down, a woman was found shot to death in a SUV and a man was fatally shot in a park in Independence.Bishop Hogan's Darreon Murray was with four people wounded in a shooting on Interstate 70 near Van Brunt Boulevard exit around 1:30 a.m. after leaving a post-game party, Fox 4 reported. Murray died at the scene. "Two others were taken to the hospital with life-threatening

  March 9, 2009

• Killa City: Charges filed in Norton Avenue slaying

  Melba J. WalkerMelba J. Walker told detectives with the Kansas City Police that she would "confess" to shooting and killing Jeanette Juarez Saturday morning if the police would release her daughter-in-law. Jackson County prosecutors charged Melba J. Walker with second-degree murder and armed criminal action today.Court records claim Melba Walker took a gun from her 29-year-old son Corinthians E. Walker, fatally shot Juarez and attempted to shoot a witness. The witness told police that the shooti

  March 9, 2009

• St. Paddy's Day: Free parking ... and a lotta cops

  Silversun PickupsDrinking and driving today is gonna be a real bad idea, especially with the DUI checkpoints and extra patrols. The Kansas City Police Department will be out late. Starting at 10 p.m., they'll be running a sobriety checkpoint. Where? They're stingy with the details. All you get is "a location in Kansas City, Missouri that is known for occurrence of DUI related crashes or DUI arrests." Uh, that could be anywhere.Also, extra Johnson County Sheriff's Deputies "will be out in force"

  March 17, 2009

• Killa City: Man found fatally shot in apartment

  Kansas City Police found a man shot to death in a third floor apartment at 811 East Armour Boulevard at about 12:30 a.m. View Larger Map Police say the victim had at least one gunshot wound. A neighbor told police that he had heard several gunshots and saw someone run from the apartment building. Police say there are no suspects in custody.  Fritz LeandreKSHB Channel 41 also reports that police are investigating whether a man shot to death by two KC police officers was involved in the ho

  March 26, 2009

• Killa City: KC Police investigating homicide on East 40th Street

  Kansas City Police say they are investigating a homicide after the body of a black female was found in a yard in the 1600 block of East 40th Street. View Larger Map The Police arrived on the scene at 7:30 a.m. This is Kansas City's 26th homicide.

  March 30, 2009

• Killa City: KCMO homicide No. 28

  I must have missed this e-mail from the Kansas City Police yesterday, but noticed it on Crime Scene KC. Kansas City Police responded to a 911 call from a woman saying her husband had been shot at 6407 Manchester Avenue. View Larger Map Ahmed J. JohnsonOfficers found a man's body in the second-floor breezeway of an apartment building. The man, in his late 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene. No suspect or motive was known, yet. Tipsters should call 816-474-8477.That's three homicides in KCM

  April 1, 2009

• Killa City: KCMO homicide No. 29

  KSHB Channel 41 reports that Kansas City Police are investigating the death of a man who was beaten up and run over by a car Wednesday night. The Kansas City Star says the victim was beaten by three or four men and left lying in the intersection of East 11th Street and Grand Boulevard around 10 p.m.Then a car hit the victim, who died at the scene. View Larger Map Update (4:57 p.m. Thursday, April 2): From the KCPD: Officers were called Wednesday night at about 9:58 p.m. to 10th and Grand to

  April 2, 2009

• Killa City: Police ID man killed at 10th and Grand

  Dwayne E. SmithKansas City Police have identified the man who was beaten and run over at 10th and Grand on Wednesday night. The victim was 47-year-old Dwayne E. Smith of Kansas City, Missouri. Smith was lying in the middle of the street when he was run over by a woman. Surveillance video reviewed by police showed Smith being beaten by a man and fell in the street before he was struck by the car. The suspect fled the scene with another man. Smith was taken to an area hospital where he died. The p

  April 3, 2009

• Killa City: KCMO homicide No. 30

  Two people died in weekend shootings. At 3:18 a.m. Saturday, Kansas City Police found a man in his late 20s or early 30s fatally shot in an upstairs apartment at 1210 Independence Avenue, according to Crime Scene KC. View Larger Map William E. HarmonNo one else was in the apartment and the police didn't have any information on a suspect. Update (4:27 p.m., Monday, April 6): Kansas City Police identified Saturday morning's homicide victim as 28-year-old William E. Harmon of Kansas City, Missou

  April 6, 2009

• Killa City: KCMO homicide No. 32

  Kansas City Police found the body of a black man shot to death at 9th and Harrison at about 5 a.m. View Larger Map The police say a person of interest was taken into custody at the scene. No names have been released, and the police are asking anyone with tips to call 816-474-8477.

  April 8, 2009

• KCPD cuts gay members' health insurance benefits

  Kansas City Police Chief Jim CorwinLast Thursday afternoon, members of the Kansas City Police Department received an e-mail with the subject line: "Police Budget Update." The "Extra Daily Informant" explained how the department is going to make ends meet with a $15 million cut to the budget that begins May 1. Chief Jim Corwin, the memo noted, had tapped a 12-person task force earlier in the day to study the numbers and make recommendations to the full Board of Police Commissions later this mon

  April 14, 2009

• KCPD says heteros hit hardest by domestic partner cuts

  A few hours after I posted an item about Kansas City Police Department yesterday, spokesman Rich Lockhart let me know the information might be misleading. According to a police memo last week, the department is cutting domestic partner benefits in an effort to save $421,000 in a particularly tight budget year. While such benefits allow same-sex couples to get shared health insurance, plenty of straight pairs take advantage, too. A domestic partnership, I now know, can be any man and

  April 15, 2009

• Bare Biker Gets Busted

  It's not clear why the cops brought him down, but it may have been a bike seat infraction.

  November 22, 2007

• Uneasy Riders

  November 8, 2007

• Letters from the week of June 7

  Justin Kendall nailed this piece. Well-written, like a twisted pulp story. It could become a blockbuster movie.

  June 7, 2007

• The Ice-Cold Case

  Two crusading reporters and their private investigators still can’t crack a notorious KC crime.

  July 29, 2004

• Booby Trap

  A lawyer says cops shouldn't tie up strippers with prior restraint.

  July 25, 2002

• Let's Dance

  Joe Cummings suffered a big time drug bust. But these days he's entreprenuer of the year.

  October 11, 2001

• Loop Road remains a place of controversy

  Last month a bystander was shot and killed at Swope Park, resurrecting the debate over safety at the Loop.

  May 4, 2000

• March 2 sucked for everyone

  Yesterday, the Kansas City Police Department released a report on the accident exonerating the Kansas City Fire Department in the death of 7-year-old Obarimomoya Nkani, who was hit and killed by a fire truck answering a call on March 2. View Larger Map The Nkani family had raised questions as to whether the pumper's lights and sirens were on when Obarimomoya ran in front it as the truck approached the intersection of 9th and Euclid. The report answered those questions, saying the fire truck's

  April 17, 2009

• The police will not tolerate your marijuana enthusiasm

  The Kansas City Police Department knows that today is a "day known as a holiday in the drug culture." We're sure your attention's probably already wandering, hippies, but if you can keep it together long enough to finish this post you'll be glad you did. Ok. Today the KCPD will be coordinating with other police departments to monitor metro roads and specifically watch for anyone who might be stoned behind the wheel. They'll pay special attention to the areas around schools. So remember tha

  April 20, 2009

• Chief Corwin: No layoffs but KCPD will lose officers on the streets

  Chief Jim CorwinThe Kansas City Police Department won't be laying off officers -- or grounding the helicopter -- but the department will be losing officers on the street, Police Chief Jim Corwin wrote on his blog after the budget was approved yesterday. The cuts attempt to make up for a $15 million shortfall.  The KCPD will lose officers to retirement in the next month and normal turnover, Corwin wrote. The department is also under a hiring freeze (down 21 officers from last year). And the

  April 29, 2009

• 10-year-old girl claims she was raped at George Washington Carver Elementary School

  A 10-year-old girl claims that another student raped her in a classroom Monday at George Washington Carver Elementary School (4600 Elmwood Ave.). View Larger Map An incident report taken by the Kansas City Police Department gives these details: The alleged rape happened after a teacher left the students alone in his classroom. The male student allegedly locked the classroom door, took the girl into a corner, reached down the girl's pants and touched her vagina. Then he asked if he could put h

  May 20, 2009

• KCPD singlehandedly stimulating U.S. car manufacturers

  Dave Helling of The Kansas City Star today reports that the Kansas City Police Department spent $2.1 million in the last fiscal year on more than 100 vehicles that aren't ready for the road. Most of the new cars and vans are being warehoused at the overhaul base at the Kansas City International Airport, waiting to be fitted with radios, lights and sirens.Some of the KCPD's cars in its existing 800-vehicle fleet had more than 200,000 miles on them, police spokesman Capt. Rich Lockhart told the S

  July 1, 2009

• It’s a dirty job nabbing horny guys in the park, but somebody’s gotta do it

  July 9, 2009

• KCPD gets stimulated -- gets $8.3 million to keep recruits and hire more officers

  ​The Kansas City Police Department gets to keep recruiting class that graduates next month after all. The department scored an $8.3 million federal grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that will pay for 28 recruits (dubbed the department's "most diverse class ever" by Chief Jim Corwin) and 22 additional officers. In May, Corwin wrote on his blog: "The members of this class mirror the community we serve more than any other in the history of this police department."Corwin did

  July 28, 2009

• What's killing KC motorcyclists?

  ​This year's looking bad for bikers. Already the Kansas City Police Department has recorded 10 motorcycle-related fatalities, which ties this year with 2003 for the highest number of deaths in the past decade, and we're barely half-way through. On his blog, Kansas City Police Chief Jim Corwin says that speed has been a factor in five crashes; in two instances cars failed to yield to motorcycles; and in one case, a biker wasn't paying attention. In at least seven of the deaths, bikers were wear

  July 29, 2009

• Kansas City gets more money for cops

  ​The Kansas City Police Department is getting even more stimulus money. Kansas City's share of the Barack bucks is $2.55 million, which a release says will go to keep police on the streets and "civilian support positions."Other stimulus lottery winners:Jackson County: $1,130,734Independence: $416,746Grandview: $90,600Lee's Summit: $62,699Blue Springs: $43,276Raytown: $41,572Sugar Creek: $10,050Add the $2.55 million to the $8.3 million federal grant the KCPD scored to keep 28 recruits and 22 a

  August 14, 2009

• 78 homicides in KCMO

  ​The death count is at 78, according to the Kansas City Police Department's "daily homicide analysis." That's one more than has been officially announced, and the highest mark at this point in time in four years. KCPD spokeswoman Sgt. Stacey Graves tells me that the cops and the Jackson County medical examiner are still reviewing all the victims this year, adding and removing people from the list.We could find out the name of the city's 78th homicide later this week. Also, we're still waiting

  August 18, 2009

• Police crackdown nets 93 arrests, $170K (update)

  ​Update 3:43 p.m.: Officer Darin Snapp just called to say that there actually was no "controlled buy" wherein a cop dressed up as a UPS worker and hand-delivered someone's stash only to arrest him seconds later. Police did seize the 40 pounds of pot, though. Live on paranoid fantasy!Over the last three days, officers with the Kansas City Police Department have been rushing drug-house doors, hauling out the criminals and making the local criminal element run scared. Local police, working in con

  October 2, 2009

• COMBAT by the numbers

  U.S. Department of JusticeThis is what $207 million in drug money looks like​Given that the campaign to renew the COMBAT tax is in full swing, we figured it was time to look at the numbers. Ready? Here's the breakdown of how $10,487,768 of your tax dollars -- 2009's COMBAT anti-drug tax fund -- was doled out among local agencies.(The agencies are categorized by the COMBAT goal they serve: Prevention, Treatment, D.A.R.E. and Law Enforcement. There's a 2009 grant match for which some agencies al

  October 28, 2009

• Weekend DUI checkpoint in KCMO

  ​The Kansas City Police Department is reportedly planning a DUI checkpoint for sometime between Friday and Sunday. Your guess is as good as mine on which night and where. So watch yourselves.

  October 30, 2009