KANSAS CITY (Kan.) — Police in Kansas City have fatally shot a former Kansas detective who sued a deputy sheriff for running him over in a rural field last year. The officer had disarmed another officer and pointed the service weapon at them both, police announced Tuesday.
Police received 911 calls from concerned citizens about a man standing on a road looking up at the sky, trying to jump in front traffic.
“Those officers had no choice — the whole incident occurred in 26 seconds,” said Police Chief Karl Oakman at a news conference.
Oakman stated that Womack ran toward officers in an “aggressive manner” when they arrived. He also said that all of the encounters were captured on dashcam and police body cameras.
Womack tried to climb into the passenger seat of the police car, then he ran around the vehicle until he met an officer. Oakman stated that Womack reached for his pants, and an officer pulled his gun out of his pocket. Womack then climbed into the patrol car’s driver seat, and the officer attempted to rescue him.
The officer’s gun, which fired two shots, was the subject of a brawl. Womack disarmed the officer and pointed his weapon at the officer. Womack then pointed it at Womack, who was shot and killed by Womack. The video shows one officer saying to the other “Man, you just saved me life,” the chief of police.
Two officers sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Oakman stated, “He knows our tactics.” Oakman said that Oakman’s knowledge of our tactics helped him disarm the officer, making it very dangerous for our officers.
Womack was first hired by the Kansas City police department in 2007. He was promoted to detective in 2018. In August 2018, he was terminated after numerous conduct violations, according to the chief of police.
Oakman stated that “we don’t know what caused him to spiral like that.”
Lionel Womack is from a law enforcement background. His mother and wife are both police officers in Kansas City. His stepfather is also a retired police sergeant. Two aunts are dispatchers for the city police.
Zee Womack, his wife, told The Associated Press in tears that her husband had been killed in an altercation, and that at least one officer involved knew him. She declined to speak further as she is still employed by Kansas City police officers and that the investigation is ongoing.
Lionel Womack claimed last year in an excess force lawsuit that Kiowa County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeremy Rodriguez drove over him on August 15, 2020 in an incident that was caught on dashcam. The deputy denied the allegations and said that he is entitled to qualified immunity.
Michael Kuckelman, Michael’s attorney in the lawsuit said that the family of Lionel Womack would like to thank the Kansas City community members for their support following yesterday’s devastating loss. They are asking for your prayers and privacy as they grieve.
Thomas Tomasic, a police spokesperson, stated that “we all knew the guy” and that everyone was friends with him. He claimed that officers didn’t realize Womack was involved in 911 calls until they arrived on the scene.
He stated that there was no link between Monday’s confrontation and the Kiowa County case.
He was a kind and generous man. Tomasic stated that he used to come to work every day and chat with us. It is quite strange. It is terrible. It is a terrible thing. No matter how many years you have been working with someone, we don’t want them to die.
