KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City, Missouri, man has been charged with the death of one woman and the stabbing of another.
The Jackson County Prosecutor's Office charged Leonard J. Johnson, 54, with second-degree murder, two counts of armed criminal action and first-degree assault.
Shortly after 10 a.m. Monday, police were dispatched to 27th and Quincy on a reported stabbing.
Officers located a woman who had been stabbed in the head and neck while in a vehicle with Johnson. She was transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
At the hospital, she told officers Johnson picked her up that morning and was going to let her use his car. But when he started smoking PCP, she asked to be taken home, per a court document.
She said Johsnon did not drive toward her residence. Instead, she said he stopped the vehicle and began stabbing her.
The woman told officers she jumped out of the vehicle and ran to a nearby residence for help.
Police also responded to Johnson's residence in the 6600 block of East 16th Street, where they noted blood and a knife in plain view in a vehicle parked at the address.
Johnson also had blood on his hands and shoes when he was contacted by officers, who said he appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance. He was taken into custody without incident.
While at Johnson's residence, a male went inside to reportedly check if there was a missing knife when a dead woman was found on the floor, a court document stated.
The deceased, 52-year-old Sherrie Baier, had sustained several stab wounds to her abdomen.
Witnesses reported Baier was Johnson's girlfriend.
Baier's mother told police her daughter and Johnson had been in an on-again, off-again relationship for 20 years, and he had been known to be violent toward Baier.
During an interview with detectives, Johnson admitted that he killed Baier, then later said he didn't kill anyone. He also told detectives the two women argued over him that morning.
Johnson's bond has been set at $500,000, cash only.
The prosecutor's office reports this is the 20th domestic violence-related homicide in KCMO this year, compared to 12 last year.
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