It's probably a good thing Chris Stigall of KCMO radio decided to go on the "Your Kansas City" program on Sunday. KCTV extended invitations to all the attorneys involved in the Salva case, the KCMO Police Dept., the Police Board and Salva and they all refused to come on the show. "It was a good experience and everyone at KCTV5 was very nice," said Stigall on his radio show (5/30). "However, I came away thinking that no one at the station could really believe that I actually thought the police involved should have kept their jobs."
Host of "Your Kansas City"
STIGALL TO LISTENERS: GO ON 'YOUR KANSAS CITY' OR NOT?
Chris Stigall, morning news talker on KCMO-710 AM, has been invited to be on the "Your Kansas City" television program to discuss the controversial Sophia Salva case. The show is moderated by KCTV's Dana Wright and airs noon on Sundays on sister station KSMO. Stigall asked listeners (5-28-2008) for their input on whether he should do the show (which is taped on Thursdays). Listeners voted overwhelmingly for him to go on the show and show his support for the two police officers who were terminated. The Salva controversy involved two white police officers who were videotaped ignoring a Sudanese woman's pleas for medical assistance after they had pulled her car over for a series of violations. She later miscarried. The officers involved were immediately suspended, but two judges later held hearings and recommended the police officers be reinstated. However, last week the Police Board ruled that both officers should be terminated. Stigall has been a vocal voice in support of the police officers, saying Salva should have been taken for medical assistance when she was booked into jail, not necessarily at the time she was stopped. The Kansas City Star's news coverage, columnists and editorials (below) have overwhelmingly called for the firing of the officers. Other media outlets have followed suit. Salva's legal team did not like the news media continuously airing her police mug shot because it showed her in an unflattering light. Instead they provided a photo for media use that portrayed her in a far more sympathetic light. (LINK: "Is Salva Portrayal Honest?") "Dana Wright is a professional and I have no doubt she will be fair on the topic," said Stigall, who said he has decided to go on the show. "I've told them I'll do it," Stigall told BLC. "Frankly, I'm stunned anyone wants to hear another side. The fix has been in on this story from the beginning. "I'll see what I can do on behalf of the only people who are true victims in this story --- two professional police officers."
KANSAS CITY STAR EDITORIAL May. 27, 2008 KC police board sends right message in disciplinary case The Board of Police Commissioners got it right. With a unanimous decision to fire two officers, the governing board of the Kansas City Police Department signaled its commitment to building trust with the community. In written orders released last week, the board found fault with officers Melody Spencer and Kevin Schnell after they stopped Sofia Salva, a Sudanese native, on suspicion of attaching a fake tag to her vehicle. The officers ignored Salva�s pleas that she was bleeding and needed to go to a hospital. They had her taken to jail on outstanding warrants. A videotape of the arrest was made public after Salva sued the Police Department, contending the officers� failure to provide medical help contributed to her miscarriage. Two retired Jackson County judges, acting as hearing officers, later gathered �findings of fact� at the request of Spencer and Schnell. Judges William F. Mauer and Jack E. Gant recommended that the officers be reinstated, with back pay. In their written findings, Mauer and Gant placed considerable weight on the exemplary records of the two officers. The judges described Salva as uncooperative and emphasized her 10 outstanding warrants. But the police board appropriately focused on the actions of the officers. �Although Ms. Salva was operating a vehicle without a valid driver�s license, did not have her car properly registered or tagged, and was evasive and not entirely truthful with the officers, she was entitled to be treated in a courteous and dignified manner, in accord with department policy,� the board stated. Legal action in the case is not over. Salva�s lawsuit is pending, and the officers have said they will appeal their firings to Jackson County Circuit Court. But the police board has made a strong statement: Everyone deserves decent, humane treatment from police officers. LINK: http://www.kansascity.com/340/story/638430.html
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