Dr. William Lewis Corporon and Reat Griffin Underwood
Terri LaManno
Suspect in killings at Overland Park Jewish centers facing state, federal charges
By TONY RIZZO
The Kansas City Star
State and federal officials are conducting a dual investigation into the hate-crime shootings that killed three people Sunday outside the Jewish Community Center and Village Shalom in Overland Park, authorities announced Monday. Frazier Glenn Miller Jr., 73, of Aurora, Mo., could be charged as soon as Tuesday in Johnson County District Court, where he probably will face murder counts.
Miller will face hate-crime charges in federal court, based on allegations that he was motivated by bias, said Barry Grissom, the U.S. attorney for Kansas.
“We are in a very good place from an evidence standpoint and will present the case to a grand jury in the not-too-distant future,” Grissom said in a news conference in Overland Park.
Asked whether others could have been involved in the shootings, FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael Kaste said the investigation is focused on Miller.
“We will look everywhere the evidence takes us,” said Kaste, who oversees the bureau’s Kansas City office.
Miller has made statements to investigators, but authorities would not reveal those comments Monday. The southwest Missouri man long has been known for deeply anti-Semitic and racist statements. He was a Ku Klux Klan grand dragon at one time and founded the White Patriot Party in the 1980s.
Reat Griffin Underwood, 14, and his grandfather, William Lewis Corporon, 69, were killed about 1 p.m. outside the Jewish Community Center, where Reat planned to audition for a singing contest. Reat was a freshman at Blue Valley High School. His grandfather was a physician. Both were Methodists.
Terri LaManno, 53, of Kansas City, was killed at the Village Shalom assisted living facility in Overland Park. She was a Catholic.
Also on Monday, two public defenders in Kansas were appointed to represent Miller in any federal hate-crimes prosecution.
Kansas Federal Public Defender Melody Brannon Evans and her first assistant, Kirk Redmond, will represent Miller should he be charged in a criminal complaint or, later, by grand jury indictment.
And should federal prosecutors decide to seek the death penalty, Evans and Redmond would continue to represent Miller. Both have worked capital cases and are qualified to do so under federal rules.
Overland Park police received 28 emergency calls shortly after the shootings Sunday afternoon. Those calls, many of which included a description of the shooter’s car, helped police arrest the suspect quickly, Police Chief John Douglass said Monday.
Douglass asked anyone with information that could help investigators to call police at 913-895-6910 or the FBI at 816-512-8200.
Reactions to the shootings
Statements released or made Monday about the shootings at two Jewish centers in Johnson County:
From St. Peter’s Catholic Church, the parish of victim Terri LaManno:
“She was a loving mother and wife, and a gentle and giving woman. She will be greatly missed by our community. St. Peter’s parish family is coming together to support and comfort Terri’s family and all who loved her, during this very difficult time.
“Our prayers are with the families of the other victims, and all who have been touched by this senseless tragedy. We ask God’s special blessing on our Jewish brothers and sisters as they approach their sacred season of Passover.
“As we enter our Holy Week, we take courage from the promise of Christ’s resurrection. We pray for peace and all those who suffer from violence. We thank all those who have expressed their support for Terri and her family, and ask for their continued support and prayers.”
From the Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired, where LaManno worked:
“The Kansas City community has experienced a great loss. Terri LaManno, occupational therapist at CCVI for eight years, was a victim of the senseless shooting yesterday at Village Shalom. Terri was a gracious, generous, skilled, and deeply caring individual who made a great difference in the lives of so many children and their families with whom she worked at CCVI. She will forever be missed by all of us in the CCVI family.”
From President Barack Obama, who while speaking at an Easter prayer breakfast at the White House vowed that the government would provide whatever is needed to suport the investigation:
“As Americans, we not only need to open our hearts to the families of the victims, we’ve got to stand united against this kind of terrible violence, which has no place in our society. We have to keep coming together, across faiths to combat the ignorance and the intolerance, including anti-Semitism that can lead to hate groups and violence because we are all children of God.”
From U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder:
“I was horrified to learn of this weekend’s tragic shootings outside Kansas City. These senseless acts of violence are all the more heartbreaking as they were perpetrated on the eve of the solemn occasion of Passover. Justice Department prosecutors will work with their state and local counterparts to provide all available support and to determine whether the federal hate crimes statute is implicated in this case. “No matter what, we will do everything in our power to ensure justice is served in this case on behalf of the victims and their families. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by these heinous acts.”
From the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum:
“The … museum extends its condolences to the victims and families of the shootings at the Jewish Community Center and the retirement home in Kansas City.
“The alleged perpetrator is a white supremacist and former leader of the Ku Klux Klan. In 2009, the Museum was targeted by a racist and Holocaust denier who murdered our friend and colleague Special Officer Stephen Tyrone Johns. These tragic events demonstrate the continuing need to combat hatred and antisemitism in all of their forms.”
A joint statement from Eva Schulte and the Rev. Emanuel Cleaver III, on behalf of Communities Creating Opportunities:
“Yesterday three lives were needlessly and horrifically stolen from our community when a man with a gun in his hand and hatred in his heart attacked two Jewish sites in the suburb of Overland Park, Kansas. This shocking act of wickedness painfully demonstrates that an attack on one faith community is an attack on all.
We grieve with the Jewish community for the targeted violation of their sacred ground.
We grieve with the Christian community for the three innocent lives that were lost.
And we grieve for the soul who perpetrated this evil, putting personal hatred above human life.
On this eve of Passover we are reminded of God's faithfulness to people in the midst of suffering and tragedy.”
http://www.kansascity.com/2014/04/14...#storylink=cpy
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