KANSAS CITY/INDEPENDENCE, MO (KCTV) — KCTV5 has learned that Cody Harrison, a suspect in the fatal shooting of Independence police officer Blaise Madrid-Evans, was recently arrested by the KCPD with a handgun on September 2.
According to Missouri law, he was released after 24 hours, and has not yet been charged.
A weapon-possession felony is a class C felony and carries a prison sentence of 3-10 years.
The Jackson County prosecutor told KCTV5 that it had received a probable cause statement on September 9.
Harrison currently faces other charges including burglary and burglary. He was out on bond for theft and on parole for a previous sentence.
That previous felony also involved a weapon. He was convicted in 2011 of shooting at or from a motor vehicle and served time in state prison.
KCTV5’s investigative team also requested police reports from regional agencies.
KCTV5 received a report from Grain Valley where Harrison faced charges of allegedly stealing from a former employer. That report included a chilling warning.
“It should be noted, Cody has always been known to be armed with a shotgun,” the officer wrote.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmidt tweeted about the case.
In 2011 he was sentenced to 15 years. Served less than half. June ’20 Arrested for armed robbery—Jean Peters Baker declined to be prosecuted. Arrested for 2d burglary on Jul ’21 – No condition issued. Sept ’21 Arrested again – no charges. This man should not have come on the streets. https://t.co/G4NaQoss4B
— Eric Schmidt (@Eric_Schmitt) September 16, 2021
When contacted by KCTV5, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office issued the following statement regarding the fatal shooting and local media coverage:
Contrary to initial reporting, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office has not ruled out prosecuting or filing a case against Cody Harrison after he shot a Freedom police officer this week.
In fact, a warrant for the arrest of Cody Harrison was issued on September 13, 2021, after he failed to appear for a hearing in late August in a criminal case launched in February 2021. We had requested that arrest warrant.
In that case, Harrison was charged with second-degree burglary and theft for a Grain Valley, MO, crime. At the time we filed that case, our office’s original request was for a $10,000/10 percent bond, which is within the bond guidelines of the state Supreme Court. However, the court issued a $6,000/10 percent bond and it was later reduced by the court to a ROR bond (issued on its own identity).
In addition, Kansas City Police presented us with a new case on September 7 (obtained by our office on September 9) of Harrison carrying a firearm that month (September 2), which he was prohibited from carrying. It was because he was a convicted criminal. That matter was being reviewed for charging in our office.
Although arrested on September 2, we did not find the case until September 9, when Harrison had been out of custody for several days.
Harrison was convicted in Clay County of the unlawful use of a weapon in 2011 and sentenced to 15 years in prison. It is our understanding that he was on parole from Clay County for that sentence.
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