Missouri State Highway Patrol asked to investigate shooting of unarmed Black man
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (NewsNation Now) — Prosecutors are calling on the Missouri State Highway Patrol to investigate the fatal shooting of an unarmed Black man by Kansas City police in March.
Mike Mansur, a spokesman for the Jackson County, Missouri, prosecutor’s office, said Tuesday that Kansas City police recently submitted the findings from their investigation into the shooting of 47-year-old Donnie Sanders. But Mansur said prosecutors still wanted an outside agency involved, even though Sanders was killed before the patrol began to investigate Kansas City police shootings.
“It is clear, I am guessing, why we don’t want people investigating themselves, so we need to make sure we have the best investigation that we can have,” Mansur said.
Police said an officer attempted to stop a vehicle for a traffic violation, but the driver didn’t immediately pull over. After eventually coming to a stop, police said the driver, later identified as Sanders, took off running, NewsNation affiliate WDAF reported in March.
Police said that Sanders raised his arms “as though he had a weapon” as he ran away from the traffic stop.
An officer then ordered him to get on the ground and fired when Sanders didn’t follow the commands, police said.
Kansas City police later determined that Sanders wasn’t armed when he was shot, WDAF reported.
One of Sanders’ sisters, Reshonda Sanders, said her brother had been released from the hospital just one day earlier after undergoing hernia surgery.
“We knew he was in intense pain,” she said, suggesting he may have been moving slowly.
Sanders’ uncle, Mark Sanders, told WDAF that his nephew did not carry a gun.
“He never carried a gun his whole life,” he said. “Donnie never carried a gun.”
Kansas City Police spokesman Capt. David Jackson said the department is not naming the officer because no charges have been filed.
He declined to comment further, saying police have an agreement with the prosecutor not to comment on active cases.
The Associated Press and NewsNation affiliate WDAF contributed to this report.
