KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A woman claims in a federal lawsuit that Kansas City, Missouri, police officers kicked in her front door, damaged her home during a search and took about $20,000.
Monecia Smith alleges in the lawsuit she saw a man she did not know knock on the front door of her house at 12:17 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2020.
Smith got out of bed, checked her video surveillance and saw the man had been shot. She did not open the door.
A KCMO police detective came to her house within the next two days and told Smith "he was going with her back to her house so that he could obtain the video surveillance she had," according to the lawsuit.
Smith, worried for her safety, told the detective he could not come to her house alone to get the video.
A tactical team and other officers came to Smith's house to serve a search warrant on January 15, 2020, according to the lawsuit.
Smith was not home and officers kicked open the front door.
She later learned from one of the officers police were there to get a “video surveillance system to include the DVR and or any components needed to recover surveillance video from the system," the lawsuit states.
Smith also claims in the suit the search caused extensive damage to her home, personal property and officers took $20,000.
In addition, Smith watched the Ring camera video and heard police use profane language about her, the suit states.
An attorney for the KCMO Board of Police Commissioners filed a motion to dismiss in April 7, 2023, for failure to state a claim.
Smith's attorney has until April 21 to respond, according to court records.
"We generally do not comment on pending litigation to ensure fairness to all parties involved," a KCPD spokesperson said in a statement to KSHB 41.
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