KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office announced charges Wednesday against two people in two separate fatal crashes.
Delton Cooper is charged with driving while intoxicated resulting in the death of another in a Feb. 1, 2026, crash at 43rd Street and Paseo Boulevard.
Shamika Wedlow is charged with first-degree involuntary manslaughter, second-degree assault and leaving the scene of an accident in a June 1, 2025, crash at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Prospect Avenue.
Kansas City, Missouri, police responded around 4:30 p.m. to the Feb. 1 crash.
Police said Cooper was speeding northbound on Paseo Boulevard in a white Chevy Equinox as a westbound Jeep Cherokee entered the intersection.
Investigators said the Jeep stopped at the stop sign before entering the intersection and did not see Cooper before the collision. Cooper attempted to apply his brakes and swerve to avoid the vehicle, according to a court document.
The impact caused the Jeep to overturn and eject the driver; Cooper’s vehicle crashed into a light pole.
The prosecutor’s office said Cooper’s preliminary breath test at the scene revealed a blood alcohol concentration of .247. The valid breath test came back at .228.
It was also determined he was driving 91 mph five seconds prior to the crash, 96 mph 1.5 seconds before the crash and 81 mph at or near impact, per a court document.
The driver of the Jeep succumbed to their injuries on Feb. 5.
A judge set Cooper's bond at $75,000 (10%).
KCPD was called just before 1:30 a.m. on June 1, 2025, to the crash at MLK and Prospect.
Responding officers were informed by the driver/victim that they were struck by a white Nissan that failed to stop at a red light. The driver said they were picked up and followed the Nissan to a residence.
City cameras confirmed that was what happened.
When officers found Wedlow’s vehicle, which had heavy damage to the passenger side, she was said to have glassy eyes, slurred speech and smelled of alcohol, a court document said.
Three passengers in Wedlow’s vehicle were transported to nearby hospitals with serious injuries. Passenger Cecil Henderson, 67, died in the crash.
Several months later, officers made contact with one passenger who was in the ICU at St. Luke’s Hospital. She said the group in Wedlow’s car went to a liquor store to purchase beverages to drink at Loose Park, where they later left for another liquor store to purchase more alcohol to consume at a park near downtown. She told investigators she did not drink or smoke weed — but Wedlow did.
She described a chaotic drive after the group decided to leave around 1 a.m., including Wedlow engaging in several verbal/physical altercations, calling her son and telling him she wanted him to beat someone up, and becoming “increasingly angry… driving in an erratic manner by speeding and refusing to stop for multiple red lights,” according to a court document.
The passenger said she prayed for her safety before blacking out, waking up at Wedlow’s residence to be informed of the crash.
A toxicology report was not provided for Wedlow.
Wedlow was convicted in 2019 of driving while revoked/suspended.
A judge has set her bond at $75,000 (10%).
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