Independence officer, Jackson County process server killed in shooting
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — An Independence police officer and Jackson County civil process server were shot and killed, and two more officers were shot and wounded Thursday.
The deadly shooting happened around 1 p.m. outside a house in the area of N. Elsea Smith Road and E. Bundschu Road in Independence.
Authorities said this happened after process servers were attempting to serve an eviction, and the shooting suspect is in custody.
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Independence Police Chief Adam Dustman identified the officer killed as 35-year-old Cody Allen. He had served with multiple departments and been with IPD for about two years. He’s survived by his wife and two young children.
Jackson County Judge Jalilah Otto identified the process server as Drexel Mack, who served the court for 12 years and was in his early 40s.
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Mack is survived by his fiancé, who lives in the Kansas City area, and multiple children who live in Florida.
“He is beloved by many, he is kind and is a hard worker,” Otto said while recapping Thursday’s tragic events.
“We are devastated that a court employee, who is a public servant, was shot by a member of the public while performing their job,” Otto said. “Our hearts are heavy and our thoughts are with our employee, our entire Court family, and the Independence Police Department.”
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MSHP Cpl. Justin Ewing said process servers initially called for help after one was shot. It’s unclear how many were there for the initial shooting. Independence police officers answered the call, and three were shot while responding.
Kansas City police Capt. Jacob Becchina said Independence police then called for more backup and a tactical response team went to the scene, as well as officers from multiple agencies.
As of 5:30 p.m. Thursday, officers at the scene are in the midst of an Operation 100, commonly referred to as a standoff, in the event that there’s still someone in the house.
By 7:30 p.m. Thursday, tactical response officers carefully searched the home and did not find anyone else inside the home. They have secured the scene and released it to the Missouri State Highway Patrol for further investigation.
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The suspect hasn’t been identified yet, nor have the other officers who were wounded.
FOX4 will continue to provide updates about this story as we learn more details.
