MSHP alleges occupants of minivan and KCPD officer fired weapons in fatal Friday shooting

Two people died after gunshots allegedly were fired Friday between a police officer and the occupants of a minivan stopped near a Kansas City intersection, according to the Missouri Highway Patrol.

The agency is investigating the shooting, which involved a Kansas City police officer, as part of an agreement with the department regarding reviews of deadly force.

Around 9 p.m. Friday, the officer was waiting in traffic at an intersection near 31st Street and Van Brunt Boulevard on the city’s East Side. He noticed a pickup truck stopped in an area of the intersection where it was “kinda suspicious” for cars to stop, said Sgt. Andrew Bell, a spokesman for the Highway Patrol.

Dash cam footage on the officer’s car showed a person lean out the driver’s side window of the truck and point a gun at either a Volvo or a minivan stopped nearby, according to Bell.

“It was very aggressive. It looked like he was getting ready to shoot those people,” Bell said.

Then a passenger in the pickup truck stepped out of the vehicle and started walking with a gun in their hand. They got back in the truck with their gun and sped away shortly after, Bell said.

The officer’s car pulled forward next to the minivan, which Bell said prevented the dash cam from capturing the interaction between the people in the minivan and the officer.

Shots were fired by the officer through the driver’s side window and into the minivan. Shell casings recovered at the scene showed the occupants of the minivan also fired a weapon, according to Bell.

Following the gunfire, the minivan slowly rolled forward, hitting the curb.

The officer ordered the occupants of the minivan to exit the vehicle. Three people walked out, while two people, a driver and a passenger, were too injured to move.

Marcell Nelson, 42, and Kristen Fairchild, 42, who police believe was driving, succumbed to their injuries some time after the shooting, according to Bell.

A third person suffered injuries described as minor. No officers were injured.

Two people were detained by investigators for questioning.

Police recovered four firearms from the minivan, Bell said.

Autopsies are being conducted on Nelson and Fairchild and investigators are examining any surveillance footage of the shooting.

The fatal shooting marked the 83rd and 84th homicides in Kansas City so far this year, according to data maintained by The Star, which includes police shootings in its annual tally. Last year, the city saw 172 homicides — the second-highest number on record.

Once the investigation is complete, the Highway Patrol will forward its findings to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office to determine whether the shooting was lawful.