Kansas City Chief of Police

Property crimes have increased by 31% between 2019 and 2023. Much of that is due to a spike in car thefts. Faced with mounting public criticism, Kansas City officials are looking at solutions that include a new temporary jail.

Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves is casting blame on a lack of consequences for young people who commit property crimes like stealing cars. She says that light punishments from the juvenile court system are emboldening teens and causing the crimes to escalate — like in the recent murder of Shaun Brady.

Several Kansas City communities are calling on police to do more about crime, amid an ongoing spike in car thefts. Graves says more severe consequences are necessary, and having more space to house city detainees could help.

Police Chief Stacey Graves said she is frustrated that many teens charged with violent crimes don't face stiffer consequences. She made suggestions to juvenile court authorities.

Gov. Mike Parson appointed Madeline Romious, an AT&T vice president, to the five-member board that oversees the police department. Parson has chosen all four of the appointed board members, while Mayor Quinton Lucas fills the fifth slot.

Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves’ first year coincided with the city’s deadliest on record, with 185 homicides in 2023. Kansas City is an outlier to many U.S. cities, where murders decreased.

Kansas City Police say that no charges have been filed yet against the detained suspects, who are juveniles. The only confirmed death so far in Wednesday's shooting at Union Station is 43-year-old Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a local radio DJ.

Kansas City Police report that three people are in custody after a shooting west of Union Station near the parking garage, which occurred near the end of Wednesday's Chiefs victory rally. One person is dead and at least 21 were injured, not including those hurt in the rush out of the area.

Community members are outraged over a cellphone video that captured off-duty KCPD officers pushing a handcuffed Black woman face-first into the ground and calling her an “animal." Speaking on KCUR's Up To Date, Police Chief Stacey Graves said the incident is being reviewed internally and by outside law enforcement.

Since she was appointed head of the Kansas City Police Department eight months ago, Chief Stacey Graves said, reducing violent crime continues to be the top priority.

The separate attacks allegedly occurred after Dairon Lee Riley, 23, met the women online. Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said authorities believe there are more victims.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson is expected to issue a pardon for Eric DeValkenaere, the first Kansas City Police officer to be convicted for fatally shooting a Black man. DeValkenaere was convicted in November 2021.