A Missouri police officer and a court employee were shot and killed Thursday during an eviction in Independence. Two other officers were wounded in the shooting.
Justin Ewing of the Missouri State Highway Patrol said the three officers were all with the Independence Police Department. The court employee was a process server from the Jackson County Circuit Court, ABC News reported.
Independence Police Chief Adam Dustman identified the slain officer as Cody Allen, 35, and the court employee as Drexel Mack, in his 40s.
Ewing said police were first called shortly after 1 p.m. and told that process server had been shot. Several other process servers were at the scene, but no police officers were there, he said. When officers arrived, the suspect fired on them.
According to KMBC, Allen was shot while rendering aid to Mack.
The suspect was eventually taken into custody and taken to a hospital with minor injuries, but police did not say what type injuries.
Allen had been with Independence Police for two years but a member of law enforcement for much longer, police said. He his survived by a wife and two children. Mack had been with Jackson County courts for 12 years and is survived by his fiancée.
“We are devastated that a court employee, who is a public servant, was shot by a member of the public while performing their job,” 16th Judicial Circuit Court Presiding Judge Jalilah Otto said. “Our hearts are heavy, and our thoughts are with our employee, our entire Court family, and the Independence Police Department.”
Dustman said Allen was an officer who “always had a smile.”
“He was the guy that when you go on a call, you knew he was gonna be there,” the chief said. “He could defuse things in a moment’s notice. He was right there to back you up.”
Police have not released the name of the suspect or said what charges they face.
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[Featured image: Drexel Mack/Facebook and Cody Allen/Independence Police Department]
