KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A man suspected of a deadly shooting at a Kansas City, Missouri, nightclub could be facing life in prison.
Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney Jean Peters Baker announced Friday that Isiah Clinton is charged with three counts of first degree murder, two counts of first degree assault and five counts of armed criminal action.
On May 21, five people were shot, three of them — Antoinette Brenson, Clarence Henderson and Jason McConnell — were killed.
Last week, KSHB 41 met with the owners of Klymax Lounge about their plans to reopen the lounge side of their business with added security.
While they shared how they're still processing the shooting that day, they also had questions about why police didn't get there when they first called to report a suspicious vehicle in the area.
"I come from the streets," said Mario Williams, co-owner of Klymax Restaurant and Lounge. "You see things happening before they happen."
Williams showed KSHB 41 his call log from that day.
"We called them the first time," Williams said. "The operator said they had police spread everywhere, so when I hung up, security was like call them again, that was Jason."
Williams said McConnell, who was a security guard at Klymax, noticed something was brewing. He was shot and killed that morning on the job.
"He kept everyone in and made sure no one from outside came in," Williams said.
Williams walked KSHB 41 through each call he made that morning.
"I called them at 1:04. Called them twice. Well, when we called them the first time at 1:04 a.m., I told them there was suspicious activity outside." Williams recalled. "When we called them at 1:04 a.m., the operator said, 'Sir, we're having what's called a blackout in the city, so unless there's a crime being committed, we can't send officers your way.' I was like, 'Ma'am, there's guys outside with guns on them, so can you please send a police officer to come show his presence.'"
On Friday, KCPD Chief of Police Stacey Graves said police acted when they knew there was a threat.
"Early on in the investigation, there was some discussion about calling 911, we did receive a 911 call at 1:08 a.m. about a suspicious vehicle," Graves said. "At that time, officers were being dispatched on calls that involved imminent threat or danger to someone's life. At 1:25 a.m., we got a call of a shooting and officers were on scene within one minute. I just wanted to clear that up."
Both owners told KSHB 41 last week they knew police were on other calls, but their security guard was only able to do so much.
"They're doing a good job. They just need more help. We're not pointing fingers," said Rodney Newman, co-owner of Klymax.
KSHB 41 is working to get the call and logs from dispatch to hear the calls and see when each of the calls came in.
After following up for clarity about law enforcement's response after Friday's press conference, KCPD said call prioritization is not related to being short-staffed. It has always been protocol to respond to life-threatening calls first.
Klymax did not want to make any additional comments Friday.
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