INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Independence residents offered prayers of support over the weekend to the Independence Police Department.
Saturday's prayer vigil was in response to a police shooting that killed Maria Pike and her infant Destinii in early November.
"Our community is massively supportive of public safety and of this police department specifically, and we cannot thank them enough for that," said IPD Chief Adam Dustman.
Dustman last spoke to reporters on Nov. 8 at a press conference following the death of Pike and her baby.
Two Independence police officers responded to a report of a domestic dispute at Oval Springs Apartments on Nov. 7.
On Nov. 27, Independence police released edited body camera footage from the officer who discharged his weapon.
In the video, Pike is seen wielding a knife at officers with Destinii in her arms.
"We will have no further comment on the investigation until the conclusion," Dustman said.
Former Independence Police Chief Gary George spoke to approximately 20 residents offering support to IPD.
"We're all here today because I've been seeing all the negative out there about IPD on this shooting ... it's horrible," George said. "It's horrible that we had a mother and a baby killed."
George told the public it must examine what caused the deaths of Pike and Destinii. He, among others, offered condolences to the grieving family.
Following his condolences and acknowledgment of the incident, he stated, "Sometimes, the victims cause their own demise and what happened to this baby ... but please support the city, especially Chief Dustman and the Independence Police Department."
On Saturday, KSHB 41 asked Dustman several questions, including the department's stance on George's statement.
Dustman responded, "I know you want to get into the specifics of that day, and we're not going to, we're not going to continue to go down that road. I will come in and I will talk about that at the end of this."
KSHB 41 asked a second time for his department's stance on George's statement.
"I think it's situationally dependent," Dustman said.
Since the deaths of Pike and Destinii, KSHB 41 has repeatedly invited Dustman for a sit-down interview.
His office recently denied participation in a report with the KSHB I-Team involving transparency in its use of force policy.
"I would push back a little bit, Ryan, on the fact that you don't know what the policy is. The policy is there almost entirely," Dustman told KSHB 41 News reporter Ryan Gamboa. "The redacted portions that are there are there for a reason. And that is allowed for us to redact, under Missouri state law for tactics and methods we engage in. ... There's a reason that carve out exists."
Agencies in Clay County, Lee's Summit and Liberty answered KSHB 41's request.
IPD submitted the only policy with redacted clauses. Dustman told KSHB 41 the carve-out is for officer safety and to avoid sharing the department's use of force methods with the public.
"I don't have a problem with that," Dustman said. "I don't think that is a lack of transparency. It's a metric to safeguard public safety and the operational integrity of what we do."
City council members, the Independence city manager and former law enforcement attended Saturday's vigil.
The case has been taken over to the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office. Investigation remains ongoing.
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KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. Share your story idea with Ryan.
