OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) - Overland Park officials agreed to release an investigative report into the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old, just hours after a group of faith leaders called for the police chief’s resignation over his department’s handling of the case.
On Monday, members of MORE2 said Chief Frank Donchez should resign because of a pattern of a lack of “transparency, accountability and discipline” in the department. A city statement released later in the day did not address the issue of whether Donchez would step down.
The department has been under scrutiny since an officer fatally shot John Albers as the juvenile backed out of his family’s driveway in 2018.
The Rev. Bobby Love, co-chairman of the group, said the department has not been truthful about the circumstances of Albers’ death, or the subsequent departure of the officer who shot him, Clayton Jenison, KCUR reported.
“We want everybody to know that we’re not anti-police. What we are, is wanting the police to do the right thing and to say the right thing,” Love said. “The best disinfectant that you can ever have is sunlight and transparency.”
The Johnson County district attorney found the shooting was justified and Jenison was paid $70,000 in a severance agreement when he left the department. Donchez did not mention the severance package when he announced that Jenison left voluntarily “under ordinary circumstances.”
The teenager’s mother, Sheila Albers, has criticized police for a lack of accountability and transparency in her son’s death. She filed a complaint in March with the state Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training alleging that Donchez was not truthful when he announced Jenison’s departure.
The family agreed to settle a lawsuit against the officer and the city for $2.3 million.
On Monday night, the city said in a news release that it would release a report on the shooting that it had declined to release despite requests from Albers’ family and others. The report, written by a team that investigates shootings by officers in Johnson County, will be released this week, city spokesman Sean Reilly said in an email.
The city has been sued by the Albers family and media outlets over its refusal to release the report. In its statement, the city said the lawsuits and controversy over the report has led to a drop in trust of the police department and city officials, and widespread “misinformation” about the shooting and subsequent actions.
The city said it withheld the report because it contains sensitive personal information and could negatively affect future investigations. In consultation with the Johnson County Prosecutor’s office and the FBI, the city redacted some information while seeking to balance privacy concerns with the need to restore the public’s trust.
“Continuing to withhold the Officer Involved Shooting Investigation Team report has become an obstacle to restoring the community’s trust and confidence in the City of Overland Park, its officials, and the Overland Park Police Department,” the city statement said.
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