Inset left: Taquiza Johnson (Platte County Detention Center). Inset right: Ronald Barnett (Obituary). Background: A Walmart in Kansas City, Mo. (Google Maps).
A former officer with the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) is facing life in prison after shooting and killing a septuagenarian man outside a Walmart.
Last week, Taquiza Johnson, 49, was found guilty by a jury in Platte County, Missouri, on one count of second-degree murder and armed criminal action over the death of 71-year-old Ronald Barnett in August 2024.
The jury that returned the verdict also suggested a life sentence. Though the judge is not necessarily bound by that recommendation, the jury”s suggestion is likely to be given substantial weight.
Now, the victim’s family says it is “pleased” with the jury opting for the greatest possible sentence under Show-Me State law, according to a report by The Kansas City Star.
The family’s elation with the prospective punishment, however, reportedly came as the silver lining to the general “shock” that the verdict was relatively favorable to the defendant. Johnson also faced a first-degree murder charge, and the victim’s daughter told the local paper that the family had expected a conviction on that more serious count.
The underlying incident occurred on Aug. 21, 2024, in the parking lot of the Walmart near the Shops at Boardwalk shopping mall located at Northwest Barry Road and North Boardwalk Avenue.
Surveillance camera footage showed the defendant leaving the big-box store and going through the crosswalk where Barnett was driving before Johnson extended his arm toward the vehicle, according to court documents obtained by Kansas City-based Fox affiliate WDAF.
In the footage, Barnett then reverses, stops, and gets out of his vehicle. Then, Johnson is seen walking over to the victim. The footage then shows the two men interacting for roughly 20 seconds before both men return to their respective vehicles.
After that, Barnett is seen parking and getting out of his vehicle and walking toward the Walmart entrance. Meanwhile, the footage shows Johnson driving toward the victim, getting out of his vehicle, walking toward Barnett, then shooting the man once before fleeing the scene.
The entire incident occurred in less than two minutes, according to the charging documents. After the shooting, Barnett was taken to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Within 10 minutes, Missouri Highway Patrol troopers found Johnson’s vehicle at a nearby apartment complex and arrested him after he had allegedly changed his clothes, authorities said.
At the time of the shooting, the defendant was not a member of law enforcement. He worked for the KCPD between 2004 and 2014.
Barnett is survived by four children, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and five siblings, according to his obituary.
During the lengthy legal process, the victim’s family learned Barnett faced long wait times in the aftermath of the initial 911 call and was transferred to various emergency response teams, the Star reported.
“That’s just crazy to me and our family,” Barnett’s daughter told the paper. “But outside of that, I think we’re pleased with what the jury did eventually come back with, with life in prison.”
During the trial, Johnson’s defense mounted a failed self-defense argument, claiming the shooter was only defending himself because the victim had previously threatened him during their brief parking lot interaction. On the witness stand, however, Johnson admitted Barnett was not armed and that he did not see a weapon of any kind.
“The instruction on self-defense in Missouri is clear,” Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said in a press release. “Verbal threats are not enough. Name-calling is not enough. A person claiming self-defense must establish that the perceived aggressor possessed, exhibited, or threatened to use a weapon readily capable of lethal force. Deadly force is not justified in response to fear of being grabbed or even punched. The old axiom is true — you cannot bring a gun to a fist-fight.”
Johnson is slated to be formally sentenced on Sept. 14.
