Victims shot and killed in encounter with police Friday night were Gardner woman, KC man

The Missouri Highway Patrol has identified the two people shot and killed in an encounter with Kansas City police Friday night.

Kristen Fairchild, 42, of Gardner, and Marcell T. Nelson, 42, of Kansas City, were killed during an encounter with an officer at 31st Street and Van Brunt Boulevard.

One other person was injured. Their condition is not known.

Many details of the shooting, which is being investigated by the Highway Patrol, are still unclear.

Around 9 p.m., an officer radioed in a request for assistance from a McDonald’s in the area, Sgt. Andy Bell, a spokesman for the patrol, said Friday night.

Officers responded to the scene and found one officer and five people near a white van. Three of the vehicle’s occupants had been shot.

A firearm was found at the scene, but Bell said it was “too early” to say where the weapon was located. He said investigators are working to determine whether anyone other than the officer fired a gun.

The Highway Patrol would not answer any follow-up questions about the incident Saturday afternoon.

“There’s not a lot of information we can share,” Bell said Friday. “It’s very, very early in the investigation.”