CINCINNATI —

The atmosphere in Cincinnati is super-charged right now and depending on the outcome of Sunday's AFC championship game it could become Super Bowl-charged.

The Bengals bandwagon is getting larger by the hour.

Some fans are downright driven to make it a mighty memorable weekend. TJ Bedacht is one of them.

He runs GCI Digital Imaging and will take his 40-foot Fleetwood RV, a vehicle right out of a "Christmas Vacation" scene, to the Kansas City tailgate.

He will drive the 30,000 pound RV with his wife, his three kids and another VIP on board.
Big Burrow, the popular blowup which stands 30 feet high. It was deflated today for the ride ahead.

"We're going to shove him underneath the bus in one of the large compartments and we'll throw some Skyline chili down there, some Gold Star and let him eat," Bedacht said.

When we reacted in horror at the thought of throwing Big Burrow under the bus, so to speak, he quickly added, "Well, we're gooing take — gently carry him with the bus."

He made us a Who Dey banner and we carried it into the Holy Grail where ESPN shot a Sunday segment Thursday about the game ball that was delivered to the bar.

There's a definite Bengals buzz in the air just about everywhere.

"I just think people really want to be a part of this in any way they can be," said Jim Moehring who co-owns the Grail. "You know, we're expecting a big crowd here on Sunday. And I think this is just a prelude on Friday."

That's when Randi Rico and Megan Mitchell of WLWT News 5 will emcee a Who Dey rally at the DORA with Bengal greats from the past.

Anthony Munoz, Jim Breech, and Ickey Woods are among the former players who will be there along with the team mascot and the Ben Gal cheerleaders.

Here's why there's a thirst for this kind of thing despite the deep cold.

"People are proud," Moehring said. "The city wants to show their pride in these guys. It's been a long time."

Hamilton County commissioners wore their colors Thursday as they friendly wagered with the county executive in Mahomes territory.

The kibosh on a Sunday stadium watch party was fresh and still stung one commissioner, who lobbied for some Super preparation to get underway just in case.

"I just think we should start now for whether it's a watch party or a celebration," Commissioner Alicia Reece said. "Let's start getting everybody together now so we don't say that we didn't have enough time."

Some fans will head for Kansas City on Friday while others will depart Saturday morning.
Bedacht said there will be two Fleetwood RV's at the tailgate.

"We're gonna just kind of post up into a corner and have a big V and then we'll have the big blowup Burrow in the corner there and it's going to be epic," he predicted.

He knows Who Dey Super Bowl planning could start as soon as Sunday around 6 p.m.

"We might drive to L.A.," he said. "It's been talked about."

CINCINNATI —

Many of the Bengals fans who are singing "Kansas City, Here I Come" this week are eager to learn about gathering plans and tailgate locations for Sunday's AFC Championship game.

Many of the rest are wondering if they should start singing "Paul Brown Stadium, Here I Come."

Although earlier Tuesday, the Bengals' front office told WLWT no watch party was planned for Sunday, Hamilton County Commissioner Alicia Reece said Tuesday afternoon the county administrator was still checking into the possibility.

"And I'm getting so many calls from people who are calling our office sayin' this is great, this is, you know, I can't afford to go to Kansas City but I want to be a part of this," Reece said.

Many of the orange and black believers who were tailgating in Nashville last weekend are planning to do the same in Kansas City this weekend.

In Indianapolis, James Spink, who used to reside in Northern Kentucky, has been hearing from them.

"We're gettin' bombarded on social media with people, you know, askin' hey, where ya' gonna be? What time? You know, can we park there?" Spink said.

He is handling logistics for the Who Dey conference championship tailgate.

Brandon Bradshaw wants to know as soon as possible. He's a Who Dey diehard who has been to 32 straight Bengals games, including the one in Denver where he proposed to Hannah Walsh, who is joining him in Kansas City as well as in holy matrimony. Holy Who Dey.

"Luckily she was a Bengals fan when we got together," he said.

Had she said Who Dey instead of "I do," Bradshaw said, "That would have been alright. I would've accepted that."

He's among the thousands waiting to hear where the Kansas City meet-up will be on Saturday.

"Probably a six and ten o'clock time frame," Bengal Jim Foster said Tuesday. "We should have that all firmed up by tomorrow. Talkin' to one place right now. I can't officially announce yet."

Foster has been working his phone this week with the kind of intensity Joe Mixon has when he gains yardage. He asked us to deliver this message to fans who will be there for the game.

"When the Kansas City Chiefs are on offense, we're going to start our Who Dey chant," he said. "The Kansas City fans get pretty ticked off about that. They'll start their tomahawk chop chant. So, let's get Arrowhead loud for us. Let's do this."

At Midway Cafe in Ft. Thomas, Foster ordered barbecue. Not for today's lunch, for Sunday's Kansas City tailgate wherever it lands.

He was also finalizing space for another night-before gathering of Who Dey Nation.

"Nothing brings Cincinnati together like a Bengals playoff run and you can see it right now in this city," Foster said. "The city has just lost its mind."

Bengals fans, the tailgate menu is so close you can almost taste it.

Spink said, "Bein' in Kansas City this weekend, how can you not have barbecue? So, we're workin' on a couple large pigs to have and for everybody to feast on."

If Hamilton County, which owns the stadium, cannot quickly arrange a stadium watch party, Reece sounded confident and determined to have one for Super Bowl Sunday.

Contingent, of course, on a Who Dey kind of day this coming Sunday.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —

A man and a woman are confirmed dead after a firetruck crashed into a building in Kansas City's Westport neighborhood, and a third unidentified woman has also been found dead.

The incident happened around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday.

A Kansas City Fire Department firetruck was heading to a fire call, with lights and sirens on, when it hit an SUV.

The firetruck then crashed into a building. Firefighters said two people who died, a man and a woman, were in the SUV.

Firefighters spent late Wednesday night searching for someone in the rubble of the building. No firefighters were seriously hurt in the crash.

"They went back to the station, I sent them home for the evening. Just because they were shook up as well," Fire Chief Donna Lake said.

Authorities were told by a witness that a third person was walking on the sidewalk in front of the building at the time of the crash and collapse.

The building is the former home of a bar and concert venue that closed two months ago.

"That could have been really bad because 10:30 is pretty busy at a bar at least," Neighboring store owner Roman Khachaturyan said.

ORRICK, Mo. (KSHB) — The town of Orrick, Missouri, is currently without a police department after all their officers walked out on the job.

Orrick's city attorney, Kevin Baldwin, confirmed that the police chief, along with all other officers quit, but didn’t provide a reason.

The city said it’s been a month without them and the town's police department is currently not operating.

“The chief resigned, as did the other full-time officer and the part-time officers as well. No notice was given or complaints lodged with the Board or Mayor by any officer before this action was undertaken," the city said in a statement. "It was sudden, without warning, and did not allow for an orderly transition. However, such events are not unusual in small-town Missouri."

For residents, it's alarming.

“It’s concerning, we’ve always had an officer, we’ve always had a police department,” Melody Blyth, who lives in Orrick, said.

The news was a surprise to the small town of nearly 900 people.

The City of Orrick said the officers gave no notice and there were no complaints previously filed by the officers.

Blyth said she now feels unprotected.

“We’ve got people who have sheds being broken into, tools being stolen, breaking into vehicles, we have drugs in this community, who’s going to protect us?” she said.

Blyth said she’s had to keep a closer eye on her property and decided to get surveillance cameras.

“We are out here alone,” she said. “There’s not a feeling of safety. I know if I had to do something I would do what I have to do to protect myself, bottom line.”

The City of Orrick said that because the officers left without warning, it didn’t allow for a smooth transition.

In the meantime, it’s contracted with the Ray County Sheriff’s Office to provide coverage for 40 hours a week.

"The City is working closely with the Ray County Sheriff’s Dept. to provide coverage for the City, and those Deputies who patrol outside of the normal duties will be compensated by the City for their time spent patrolling Orrick," the city said in a statement. "They will, of course, have the power to enforce not only City Ordinance violations but State and County violations as well."

Ray County Sheriff Scott Childers promised to support the town, enforce city laws and ensure safety.

The office is currently answering 911 calls, but is awaiting a contract approval from the Ray County Prosecutor’s Office so deputies can consistently patrol the town.

The sheriff said he submitted the contract in early November.

KSHB 41 did not hear back from the prosecutor’s office about a timeline for the contract.

Those in town said response times are a concern.

“Twenty minutes? You can be dead, 20 minutes you can have your house broken into, 20 minutes is a long time,” Blyth said.

Childers said that when a Ray County deputy can be assigned to Orrick, the response times will be shorter.

“When there’s an off-duty deputy they will be assigned in town,” Childers said. “Response will be 90 seconds because that’s how long it takes to drive from one end of the town to the other.”

He said the town will have one sheriff’s deputy at a time per shift.

“We just don’t want people knowing when we are going to be there to cut down on the crime that's going on," he said.

However, Orrick said it also relies on citizens to keep crime in check.

"Like any small towns, the very best policing is done by our citizens who remain forever vigilant in looking out for their friends, neighbors and community. We have many retirees who often note strange occurrences and/or suspicious activity and any calls to 911 will be answered by the Ray County Sheriff’s Department," the city said in a statement. "The City, its Mayor, and Board of Aldermen are confident that there will be no significant lapse in coverage and/or any increase in crime that will not be charged and/or fully prosecuted – as it has been in the past.”

The city also said it plans to restructure its police department and will work with other law enforcement agencies and professionals to find new officers after the new year.

This story was originally reported by Megan Abundis on kshb.com.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —

A Raytown, Missouri, mother and grandmother said that COVID-19 nearly killed her three times. She said she was unvaccinated and barely survived.

Dakeela Washington's purse is full of pills — evidence of the burden she now carries.

"I went from taking one to two medications to taking 14 medications now," said Washington, who survived COVID-19. "I'm sitting here because God saved my life."

Washington was unvaccinated when she contracted the virus this summer.

"I was in the hospital from this day to this day," she said.

That day was July 6.

"(I) drove myself to the hospital and collapsed in the parking lot because I couldn't breathe. When I got there, my oxygen was 60," Washington said.

It was the last thing she remembered.

"I didn't know 60 was really low," Washington said.

She said she woke up on Aug. 28 and nearly two months had passed.

"The doctor came in, like, a week later and was, like, 'Ms. Washington, I almost had to sign you off,'" she said.

Washington said she had no clue what he meant, but then soon learned.

"I had a heart attack. I had a stroke. And I died three times. I coded three times," she said.

Washington left the hospital in October after learning how to move and talk again.

"I can't grip anything," she said.

Hospital tubes left a mark, too.

"My speech therapist said that's a survivor's scar," she said.

Washington said she was at first hesitant to get the vaccine.

"'I ain't getting the vaccine. I don't know what they did.' I was one of those and look what happened to me. It changed my life," Washington said. "It changed me."

Washington just received her second dose and is giving her own dose of advice.

"Please get vaccinated," she said.

Washington said her whole family was unvaccinated against COVID-19 at the time she got sick. Since then, her family has received the vaccine.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City, Missouri, police detective who shot and killed a Black man in December 2019 has been found guilty.

Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Dale Youngs announced the verdict Friday, a week after Det. Eric DeValkenaere’s four-day trial wrapped up on Nov. 12.

It was a bench trial, so no jury was seated, and Youngs ruled on the case alone.

A Jackson County grand jury indicted DeValkenaere in June 2020, and he was charged with first-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action, which are both felonies.

Friday, the judge announced the court found DeValkenaere guilty of both the lesser charge of second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action.

Youngs' ruling focused primarily on whether or not DeValkenaere and his partner had a right to be on the property.

Determining they did not, the judge said the pair were the initial aggressors and escalated a situation that had previously been deescalated.

As police officers, Youngs said, the detectives had a duty to retreat from the interaction.

The judge will set a sentencing hearing after meeting with counsel for both parties. DeValkenaere will remain free on bond until that time.

DeValkenaere, who started with KCPD in 1999 and was assigned to the investigations division, has been reassigned to an "administrative assignment" within the Executive Services Bureau since being charged, according to the department.

KSHB has reached out to KCPD about DeValkenaere's employment status following his felony convictions Friday.

The trial, initially scheduled to begin in July, was delayed four months and reassigned to Youngs last summer.

There was never a dispute about whether DeValkenaere killed Lamb. Still, the issue was whether he acted reasonably or recklessly, flouted the constitution, and possibly planted evidence to ensure he’d be acquitted as the prosecution contended.

DeValkenaere’s trial is believed to be the first for a KCPD officer to kill someone in the line of duty since 1942.

According to archived articles from The Kansas City Star, two officers were acquitted of second-degree murder after shooting and killing Harrison J. Ware on July 26, 1941, during a raid at the Autumn Leaf club.

DeValkenaere trial recap

DeValkenaere and his partner in KCPD’s Violent Offenders Unit, Det. Troy Schwalm, were guided to Lamb’s house by a police helicopter after another member of the unit, Det. Adam Hill reported seeing a red truck chasing a purple Ford Mustang at high speeds in the area.

Hill lost sight of the vehicles, but a KCPD surveillance helicopter found a car matching the description driving erratically in the area and followed it as Lamb returned home and started to park the vehicle behind the house.

There were no 911 calls placed about the chase and no calls indicating that the red truck had been involved in a crime beyond traffic violations.

KCPD’s policy regarding vehicle pursuits doesn’t allow patrol officers to chase vehicles except in the case of a serious felony, and officers with the Violent Offenders Unit aren’t permitted to participate in chases because their covert cars aren’t equipped with emergency lights or sirens.

Despite that, DeValkenaere and Schwalm responded to Lamb’s house to “investigate” whether a violent crime had occurred or was occurring despite no evidence that one had taken place, no indication Lamb had a weapon, and no complaining witness.

Schwalm arrived first in an unmarked Chevrolet Impala at the house on College Avenue, parked in a shared driveway on the south side of the property, and exited his vehicle with his service weapon drawn before heading into the backyard.

DeValkenaere arrived moments later in an unmarked GMC Sierra. He also drew his weapon before heading to the backyard of the property on the north side.

Neither Schwalm nor DeValkenaere asked Lamb’s roommate, Roberta Merritt, who was sitting on the porch when the detectives arrived, for permission to enter the property.

Schwalm testified that he contacted Lamb, who attempted to back the red truck into a narrow underground garage behind the house, but he refused commands to turn off the vehicle and step out of it.

It’s unclear if Lamb heard or understood Schwalm’s commands because he never responded. According to testimony from both officers, he also never looked at DeValkenaere after he approached the vehicle from the other side.

Schwalm, who was standing a few feet off the front driver’s side of the truck, said he remembered seeing Lamb’s hand with his fingers “splayed” out on the steering wheel at some point during the seconds-long encounter.

DeValkenaere, who kicked over a barbecue grill that served as a makeshift fence to enter the backyard, said from his vantage point looking through the truck’s passenger window, he saw Lamb begin to raise “a full-size polymer pistol” between the door and steering wheel aimed in Schwalm’s direction.

During the 9-second encounter from when DeValkenaere started toward the backyard to when he opened fire, the KCPD detective testified that he saw Lamb reach for the pistol but didn’t immediately fire because Lamb “posed no threat” and he thought he was attempting to hide the gun.

Schwalm said he never saw a weapon.

After seeing Lamb allegedly lift the gun toward his partner, DeValkenaere fired four rounds, shooting Lamb in the left upper chest — the fatal shot — as well as the right leg.

Neither Lamb nor Schwalm fired a weapon.

After he was shot, Lamb’s truck rolled backward down the sloped entrance to the garage and came to rest at an angle against the back of the garage.

It would be more than 20 minutes before emergency medical personnel, who declared Lamb dead, were allowed into the garage to assess his injuries.

During that time, arriving KCPD tactical personnel entered and cleared the garage of danger. Some officers testified to seeing a gun, but others said they never saw the weapon that police investigators reported finding on the garage floor below Lamb’s left hand, which came to rest hanging out of the open driver’s side window.

Merritt testified that she knew Lamb, who ran a mechanic business from the house, owned a gun and often kept it in the truck, but she said she saw it on the garage steps that morning — not far from where it was eventually found — when Lamb wasn’t home.

Pool/Jill Toyoshiba, The Kansas City Star

The prosecution insinuated that evidence detailed in police reports might have been staged or manufactured, including the location of the gun and items found on Lamb’s body that weren’t initially discovered at the scene but showed up during the autopsy on Dec. 4, 2019, at the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Officer.

Prosecutors — including trial attorney Tim Dollar, who assisted the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on the case — questioned why DeValkenaere could be heard on a voicemail captured after Lamb placed a call shortly before the shooting yelled “keep your hands up” unless his hands had been up at the time of the shooting.

They also questioned why DeValkenaere relayed information about other parties possibly having been at the house earlier in the day with weapons when he had no evidence of any such activity.

DeValkenaere said he overheard Merritt tell other officers who arrived on the scene after the shooting about a fight between Lamb and his ex-girlfriend. He radioed out after KCPD dispatch asked if there were any suspects at-large connected to the fatal incident.

What led police to Lamb’s house?

Lamb and his live-in girlfriend, Shanice Reed, have been in a fight that turned physical that morning, and she had moved out.

Both Lamb and Reed left the house on College Avenue in separate vehicles after the fight to go to her relative’s house. Police were not called about the altercation.

Reed returned later that day with friends and family to gather her belongings, which Lamb had moved to the curb, and another verbal altercation took place. Again, police were never called.

Lamb threw lugnuts at Reed as she left before she stopped her Mustang near Lamb’s truck as she pulled away. He ran down the block after her before she drove off when he got into his truck — which the defense said was stolen — and gave chase.

That chase went past Hill near the Blue Valley Market, and DeValkenaere said he later saw Lamb’s truck run a red light, but he testified that he never saw a purple Mustang. The police helicopter, which started to canvass the area after Hill radioed in the chase, also never spotted the Mustang.

The prosecution contended that DeValkenaere — and Schwalm, who is not charged in connection with Lamb’s death — illegally entered the property before shooting Lamb, making his conduct reckless and criminal.

With no evidence of a violent crime, no evidence of weapons, no calls for service from the public, no active police pursuit, no exigent circumstances to believe someone at the College Avenue residence was in danger, no search warrant, and no permission to enter the property, DeValkenaere acted unconstitutionally in manufacturing the encounter with Lamb, prosecutors said.

DeValkenaere admitted that he had no “probable cause” that a violent crime had taken place but that he had “reasonable suspicion,” which is a different legal standard that doesn’t include direct evidence of a crime.

Pool/Jill Toyoshiba, The Kansas City Star

According to prosecutors, that Schwalm and DeValkenaere were in plainclothes and driving unmarked vehicles made the civil-rights violation especially egregious.

A legal expert for the defense argued that guidance from the KCPD helicopter, Hill’s eye-witness account of the vehicle chase, and DeValkenaere’s intuition as a law enforcement officer honed over two decades created a legal justification for entering the property to investigate.

The defense also said that DeValkenaere had an obligation to follow Schwalm into the backyard rather than leave him alone after leaving behind the house.

DeValkenaere also testified under oath that he saw Lamb with a gun and never asked any fellow officers to plant evidence or alter reports related to the case.

Involuntary manslaughter is a Class C felony, which carries a maximum 10-year sentence under Missouri law.

According to Missouri law, armed criminal action carries a minimum three-year sentence and maximum 15-year sentence, which must be served consecutively — or in addition to — any underlying conviction.

In civil court, Lamb’s family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against DeValkenaere and the KCPD Board of Police Commissioners.

Lamb’s mother, Laurie Bey, acknowledged that her son was “imperfect” but said he was a good person and father to three young boys in the days after the shooting.

Dale Messing

When protests erupted in Kansas City and across the country in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, Lamb’s name was among those invoked by protesters seeking local reform.

Tod Palmer at KSHB first reported this story.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KSHB) — Ontario Hill said he takes his mother's advice very seriously.

"My momma told me to go to school every day," the kindergartner said. "That's why I have to go to school every day, so I can learn."

And that's exactly what the young kindergartner and his classmates at Frontier Schools in Kansas City, Missouri are doing — learning.

In their P.E. class, they're learning a new skill: how to ride bikes.

"You have fun with your friends," Hill said.

P.E. teacher Johnny Brown said it gives his students a sense of independence.

"A bike is in a lot of ways freedom, freedom to go places," Brown said. "And it's also really enjoyable, riding a bike."

Eric Sharp, one of the teachers at the school said it is one of the first things students learn that adults can do too.

"So they see people bigger than them doing this and once they do it, that confidence level just goes through the roof," Sharp said.

Sharp, who is an avid bike rider, looked to raise $5,000 to provide bikes for the kindergartners.

"I started through the Strider corporation," Sharp said. "I just went through them and buy enough for the 25 bikes for our kindergartners."

It is part of a national program called "All Kids Bike" through the Strider Education Foundation.

Sharp reached out to the local mountain bike community, and they helped him raise 85 percent of the funds.

"When you see 25 kids riding on a bike at the same time, it leaves you almost speechless," Sharp said. "To try and describe it, you can't even put into words, just enjoyable."

The bikes are a little unique.

"They don't have any pedals," Sharp said. "So they can sit on the seat and sit on the ground just like this. It keeps them nice and sturdy and safe and they just walk. As they progress, they can go a little bit faster."

And even though some may fall, it's getting back up that's important.

"We also want to teach them life skills, so riding a bike, that's that confidence, that lifelong athletic activity that they know they can do to stay in shape and have fun," Sharp said.

Sharp's goal is to expand the bike program so more students at Frontier Schools can learn how to ride.

This story was originally reported by Rae Daniel on KSHB.com.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson launched into an impassioned and unprompted defense of the St. Louis couple seen waving guns at Black Lives Matter protesters last month and later suggested that President Donald Trump has taken an interest in the situation.

Mark and Patricia McCloskey were seen on video June 28, brandishing an AR-15 rifle and a handgun while confronting protesters marching through the Portland Place neighborhood, where the McCloskeys live.

Police in St. Louis executed a search warrant at the McCloskey home Friday at the behest of St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s office. The couple’s lawyer said police seized an AR-15 from the house and that the couple had previously surrendered the handgun.

On Tuesday, after introducing a new grant program for small businesses during a press conference, Parson told reporters that he wanted “to address the McCloskey situation in St. Louis.”

Parson said the McCloskeys were using the Castle Doctrine to protect their property from protesters, “which they had every right to do.”

During his time as a state legislator, Parson helped expand the Castle Doctrine in Missouri — a stand-your-ground law that permits property owners to use any means deemed necessary, including deadly force, to protect themselves and their property when threatened.

Parson said police weren’t notified of the situation before reiterating “that couple had every right to protect their property."

He then slammed the District Attorney's office, without directly naming Gardner, for reportedly considering an indictment in the case.

“What they should not go through is a prosecutor attempting to take their constitutional rights away by filing charges against them for protecting their property,” Parson said.

He then said it was very difficult to remove an elected official — like Gardner — from office, calling it “one of the things we need to address in future sessions.”

It was at that point Parson invoked the White House.

“I just got off the phone with the president of the United States before I walked out here today,” Parson said. “He understands the situation in Missouri. He understands the situation in St. Louis — and how out of control it is for a prosecutor to let violent criminals off and not do their job and try to attack law-abiding citizens.”

Parson said Trump promised to do “everything he could within his powers to help with this situation and that he would be taking action to do that.”

“I’m thankful that he’s getting involved in the situation,” Parson said "... I’m thankful that he’s going to stand up for people and their legal rights.”

After opening up to questions, Parson acknowledged that “all I know is what I’ve heard” about the McCloskey case and that “I don’t know all the details of it,” but that “it’s quite evident they are standing on their property.”

“I think the president and the attorney general of the United States (William Barr) are going to take a look at it,” Parson said.

He later added, “The president doesn’t like what he’s seeing and the way these people are being treated. I know the attorney general was represented on that phone call today, so I think you’ll see some sort of actions. I think they’re going to look into things.”

Parson plans to have follow-up conversations with Trump after expressing his concern over the limited power the Missouri governor has to remove other elected officials, among other things.

“I don’t want to make it sound like he’s going to come in here and remove somebody from office, but I’m going to guarantee you the president’s focused on what’s happening here,” Parson said.

Parson has a press conference planned for Wednesday when he is likely to announce details of a special session about violent crime in Missouri.

The governor declined to discuss specifics of the special session. Democratic lawmakers have been calling for a special session on police reform since George Floyd’s death in late May sparked protests nationwide about policing and racism.

“My biggest concern right now for the state of Missouri is violent crime, homicides,” Parson said. “... We have to give the law enforcement officers the tools they need to fight violent crime. And, right now, more important than anything, we’ve got to stand up for these law enforcement officers that are dealing with violent crime.”

He blamed the protests for detracting from an officers’ ability to focus on “the street crimes that are happening out there and these violent crime situations.”

This story was originally published by Tod Palmer on KSHB in Kansas City, Missouri.

Tyler Walker is a self-described people person, which is a good thing because he spends most days working one-on-one taking pictures, specifically headshots, of people.

“For me, headshots are a way to get people confidence, show them their value. I love doing that one-on-one,” he said.

Walker runs KC PRO Headshots out of a studio in the West Bottoms neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri.

Wednesday may be one of the busiest days in his studio’s history. He hopes to take headshots of 50 different people in one day and he’s doing it all for free.

Walker and a photographer in Olathe, Kansas, are part of the 10,000 Headshots Project.

Hundreds of photographers across the United States are donating their time Wednesday in order to take headshots of 10,000 people who lost their jobs due to COVID-19 and are looking for a new one.

“It’s good to know that I’m doing something that made a real difference in a person’s life,” Walker said.

The work-based social media site LinkedIn said profiles with professional headshots get 14 times the number of views compared to profiles without a picture.

Walker said a good headshot is helpful in any job application.

As a people person, he knows people are struggling because of the coronavirus. He’s happy to be a part of a solution and give people a reason to smile.

“Giving someone a leg up to have a little bit more hope in trying to find a good job that will get them back on their feet, hopefully, I do my part to reduce a little bit of the anxiety and fear in the world right now,” he explained.

For information on how to sign up for a headshot through the 10,000 Headshots Project, visit the project website.

KSHB's Charlie Keegan first reported this story.

LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — Students are back in class at Metropolitan Community College's Longview campus in Missouri, and one student is starting her college career earlier than most.

Brayisha Avery wrote her first college paper at age 12.

"I like it. It's really fun. You learn a lot," said Avery, who goes by Bray. "What I especially like about college is you get to choose what you want to do."

Avery explained how she is able to start taking a college class at just 12 years old.

"I've been homeschooled for about three to four years and so we just sort of like kept moving up grades because we were just like flying through them," she said.

Now, Avery is starting her high school coursework and coming to her first college class this semester. She takes an English class at the MCC-Longview campus.

At Metropolitan Community College, the dual enrollment program is one of the many ways students like Avery can start earning college credit before they've finished high school. This semester, more than 1,700 high school students are enrolled in one of those programs, most of them juniors and seniors.

"And then that makes their college education, once they graduate, less expensive, they're transfer-ready, and it helps them get through their four-year degree that much faster," Katherine Swanson said.

Swanson is the MCC Longview campus president.

"It's not for everyone and I would say it's for very few that are that young, but if a person is that talented and ready for it, then we're happy to meet with them and see if it's the right place for them," she said.

Avery took a placement test before starting class at Metropolitan Community College.

"The first day, I came in actually to sit down there, sitting with her," said Avery's mom, Karesha Worford. "So I was really nervous at first, but she's winging it and she's like, she feels really confident doing it, so I'm like, ok go ahead."

Worford is proud but not necessarily surprised.

"All I've ever wanted to do was to be a support system to her and help her and push her along the way, and I really don't have to do too much pushing because she's a natural," Avery's mom explained.

KSHB asked if Avery is the youngest student in Metropolitan Community College's history.

"You know in our, you know 100 plus year history, it's hard to tell. I know we've had a couple who are a little bit younger, but not a lot," Swanson said.

To Avery, starting college courses early means starting her dreams earlier too.

"I wanna play basketball or I wanna be an astronaut," Avery said.

She also dreams of being done with college around age 17 or 18 and maybe finishing at schools like Harvard or Yale.

This story was originally published by Lindsay Shively at KSHB.

OLATHE, Kan. —

First Lt. Dustin Fergen had been deployed for almost 11 months overseas. He hadn't seen his family since Thanksgiving last year.

That changed Wednesday.

During an assembly at Heatherstone Elementary School in Olathe, Kansas, he surprised his two daughters. They both, fourth grader Joanna Fergen and first grader Angelica Fergen, didn’t see it coming.

"I was half expecting them to come running up to me, but it took a little coaxing. It was everything I could ask for," Fergen said.

Once the shock wore off, it was all smiles for the reunited family.

"But it all worked out and it was worth every second of the wait and the little lies we had to tell," Kim Fergen, the lieutenant's wife, said.

This was Fergen's first deployment. He serves as an intelligence officer in the 130th field artillery unit.

He’s now stationed a lot closer to home in Manhattan, Kansas.

The family says they have a lot of vacations planned to make up for lost time.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Whenever the Missouri Department of Transportation begins construction on land that is considered a site of early settlements, archaeologists must be on site. This allows them to ensure cultural resources are not impacted.

When construction began along 5th Street and Washington Street as part of the Buck O'Neil Bridge Replacement Project, cultural resource specialists at Burns & McDonnell made a few discoveries.

When the team made a surprising discovery, Andrew Gottsfield, a senior cultural resource specialist at Burns & McDonnell, was there.

"When we dug a hole right there, we realized that it was native soil, and then we dug a hole right in the basement here, and we found a bunch of brick, so we just connected the dots and found the foundation and came around," Gottsfield said.

That foundation, the team thinks, is from an old hotel from the 1800s.

With the discovery of the foundation, Gottsfield said, came the discovery of other kinds of essential artifacts.

"We found what we think are numerous privies, which are outhouses, and outhouses to archaeologists and urban archaeology are important because people would put their trash in the privy," Gottsfield said.

There were bottles, jars, soap holders, combs, eyeglasses, and more. The group found some items dating back hundreds of years.

Through their discovery, they concluded that the hotel was most likely for working-class people.

"This is important because we can document the lives of people that aren't documented in history. Most of history is documented by the people that are the rich merchants and whatever. So this will give us an indication of the day-to-day behavior of the people that were working that built Kansas City," Gottsfield said.

The artifacts will now go back to the cultural resource specialists' lab to be cleaned and documented. Some of the pieces could go into a museum or be put on display for MoDOT.

Officials will send some to a facility for other people to use when they find similar sites to do comparative work with the artifacts.

Daisha Jones at KSHB first reported this story.

One Kansas City community leader mobilized Latinos to vote and run for office. Paul Rojas was also the first Latino elected to state office in Missouri.

His last name, Rojas, is proudly displayed around his home on Kansas City's westside. But his first name was given to him in school.

"My real name is Raul. I guess the nuns took the little foot off the R and made it Paul, a P, but that was not uncommon," Rojas said.

His father came to the United States from Mexico. The musician found work in packing houses.

"My brother used to say, 'You know Paul, whenever you go to a strange town, if you want to find the Mexican community, follow the railroad tracks,'" Rojas said.

Rojas grew up during World War II.

"I distinctly remember in school, when Rena Marino comes in and she was crying. They had just gotten notice of her dad. They sunk the ship," he said.

He joined the Navy as a teenager, serving during the Korean War.

"You have one son and you have one star. However, many sons were serving, that's how many stars were on your window. There was not a window in this Westside that didn't have one of these with a number of stars," Rojas said. "We have gone unnoticed for what we have given to this country. And all of us like myself, I'm very proud to be American citizens."

He became politically active, working to increase Hispanic representation.

"We formed a political organization. We, like in the Black community, we were controlled people politically. So, we changed that. It wasn't easy. There were threats made," Rojas said.

Rojas was the first Latino elected to the Missouri Statehouse in 1972. While doors opened for change, he received questions.

"Some people would ask me where you're from. You know, in the state Capitol, 'Where are you from?' Where am I supposed to be from, you know?" he said.

Despite progress, he said that discrimination persists.

"There is an organized movement to paint us as not worthy of holding such positions because they label us as being non-American this and being criminal elements, many of the things that are not true," Rojas said.

At 87 years old, he continues to be involved with the historic Guadalupe Centers organization, providing education and services to the Hispanic community in Kansas City.

He also speaks out against gentrification.

"The bulldozer that's going to run me out of here hasn't been built yet," Rojas said.

He said that young people give him hope for the future.

"Be proud of your heritage and be proud of who you are, and we are all made in God's image plain and simple," Rojas said.

Last year, Rojas was appointed by the Kansas City mayor to the city planning commission, which approves most major development project proposals.

Watch the video above for the full story.

Groundskeeper George Toma, 91, has prepared the fields for every Super Bowl played. He recently gave sister station KMBC a sneak peek of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Toma was part of this year's preparation, from stripping the previous field, laser grading and bringing in new sod."When you have a Super Bowl on natural grass, you have to start a sod 18 months ahead of the game," he explained. "So this sod has been growing on the farm in Georgia for 18 months."Next up: painting the end zone logos for the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ed Mangan, NFL Field Director, described the respect Toma has earned through his experience."He's the guy who was at Super Bowl I. None of us were," he said. "He is just a walking history book."

CARTHAGE, Mo. — Haven Shepherd's life could have ended shortly after it started.

She was born in Vietnam, the result of an affair between her married father and another woman. For reasons that may never be fully clear — from potential societal shunning to financial hardship — her biological mother and father decided to kill themselves and Haven.

They strapped suicide bombs to themselves and set them off.

Both parents were killed instantly.

But Haven survived.

She was found about 40 feet from their burning home with severe damage to her legs.

Villagers took her to the nearest hospital in Da Nang, where doctors saved her life but couldn't save her legs. Other patients donated to her hospital fund so she could continue receiving care for nearly 40 days.

Shelly Shepherd

Meanwhile, across the world in Carthage, Missouri, Rob, and Shelly Shepherd felt called to add another child to their family of eight.

Shelly's friend had started a foundation in Vietnam, and they were opening a handicap shelter. The friend heard about Haven and told the Shepherds about her.

Initially, they were skeptical.

"I was like, and we have so much going on. We'd need a kid with feet. They've got to keep up," Shelly said. "And then when I met her, you know, she's just so joyful...and I realized, it's just feet, we can do this, we can bring her into the family."

At 20 months old, Haven flew with the Shepherds to the United States.

Shelly Shepherd

They took her to Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City to have a surgeon look at her wounds.

"[The surgeon] was just like, 'I'm just amazed.' He said, 'Her amputations are beautiful. We couldn't have done any better here in our hospital.' And so that was a huge blessing," Shelly said.

Haven blended into the Shepherd family quickly. Her six older siblings were all athletes, and Haven wanted to play sports, too.

At first, she tried running track, but it wasn't a good fit.

"Turns out I really don't like the heat, and I don't like to sweat," Haven said. "I just remember telling my mom, I was like, 'I'm done. I don't want to do this.' I quit at the prime age of eight years old."

Shelly Shepherd

Haven had been swimming since she was four years old, but until she turned nine, she never considered competing. At her first meet, she realized she had talent and truly enjoyed doing it.

Swimming also had another benefit — she could take off her prosthetic legs for a few hours.

"Not a lot of people realize that wearing prosthetic legs all day is really tiring," Haven said. "And when I get to take my legs off in the middle of the day for like two or three hours, that was like bliss to me."

She started with lessons at the local YMCA. Then she transitioned to Berzerker Swimming, a competitive USA Swimming club.

Shelly Shepherd

At age 13, she set the goal of making it to the Paralympics.

"She never really wavered from her decision," Shelly said. "And it's a grueling schedule. I never really had to say, 'yes, you have to go to practice.' She never really questioned it."

Haven continued to rise within the ranks of competitive swimming. When she was 16, she won a silver medal at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru.

In June of 2021, she competed in the 2020 U.S. Paralympic Team Trials in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her performance earned her a spot on Team USA.

Shelly Shepherd

"It was just such a long process, and [it] didn't really hit me until I got home," Haven said. "I knew how excited I was, but it didn't really hit me because you're just so so stressed for that whole time, and then it happened. So you have the relief, and then you're exhausted."

After years of training — including an extra year because of the pandemic — Haven said she's ready to complete the goal she set when she was 13.

"I don't really have any expectations on myself," she said. "I just want to go in being me and having fun."

For her mom, it's a reflection of all of the hard work it took to get to this point.

"When I think about where she came from, the little amputee, just orphaned girl that we picked up, to how much life she has lived in 18 years — that's such a miracle," Shelly said.

Haven continues to share her positive spirit and not dwell on the past.

"I don't look at the things that I've lost," Haven said. "I mean, I've lost so much in my life. I've lost my legs, but I've never let that hold me back."

The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games begin Aug. 24. Haven will swim in the 200-meter individual medley on Aug. 28 and the 100-meter breaststroke on Sept. 1. NBC will have primetime coverage as well as streaming options for the events. For more details, visit the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics website.

Callie Counsellor at KSHB first reported this story.

A man from Kansas City, Missouri, won a contest to create a man cave and then turned it into a nursery instead with help from a popular TV designer.

"It started out as just luck," said Josh Taylor.

Taylor entered a contest to win a man cave and he won.

"I just need a place to sit down and unwind," Josh Taylor said in a video submission.

Next thing he knew, Tamara Day of HGTV's "Bargain Mansions," showed up at the door. But when she heard Taylor and his wife's story, the man cave idea changed.

"I feel like that was one of those moments where everything flipped upside down," Day said.

Josh and Amber Taylor said they had been trying for years to have a child through in-vitro fertilization. Amber had become pregnant twice but lost both. Shortly after winning the contest, the couple found out they were expecting again.

"They said, 'What if we did a nursery?'" Josh Taylor said.

The couple loved the idea.

"This is something that we wanted for so long, having a child, and so to have his nursery designed by Tamara Day, the best of the best, was just really, really exciting for us," Amber Taylor said.

"It's really nice this was done for them and they have something so much to look forward to," said Dr. Kristin Holoch, the couple's doctor.

The Taylors said their son is due on Oct. 31. Long after the baby's moved into the new room, there will always be a sign that Tamara Day was here with autographed IKEA dollar horse.

"It's so humbling that all these people did all of this for us," Josh Taylor said.

"I've never met more deserving people," Day said.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —

A cup of coffee is how many people start the day. While prices have gone up during the pandemic, they could go up again.

"In the gas world, you and I would call this price gouging," said Tracy Allen, who's been in the coffee business since the 1980s.

Allen runs a company called Brewed Behavior, helping developing countries grow and sell coffee.

The world's largest coffee producer is Brazil and it is in a drought. But Allen said that's not the only thing pushing prices.

"Because of COVID, there was so much downtime, and nobody's working, nothing's moving, and now everybody's gearing back up, there's a shortage of shipping containers," Allen said.

With a shortage of shipping containers and coffee beans sitting on foreign docks, the price to ship it here has gone way up.

"So for me to get a container from Sumatra right now, which is typically $1,000 to $1,500 to get it to the U.S. is now close to $6,000," Allen said.

If you pay $10 a pound for coffee at the grocery store, Allen said do not be surprised to see that same coffee selling for $13 to $14 a pound. He also said that he looks for big sellers, such as Starbucks and Dunkin to raise prices, too.

The even bigger question is once shipments return to normal, will the price come down?

"And then the real question is, how many of those roasters are going to go back and take the price back down once it's up there right?" Allen said.

"So do you see this price hike as something permanent?" sister station KMBC asked.

"I'll fall short of saying it's temporary. I wish I knew," Allen said.