KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City, Missouri, police officer involved in several use-of-force investigations over the last several years resigned Friday, the Kansas City Police Department announced.
A KCPD spokesperson said the department and Blayne Newton had “mutually agreed” for Newton to relinquish his authority as a police officer as of Feb. 4, and to resign no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 13.
Under the terms of the agreement, the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners authorized a settlement of $50,000. Newton is prohibited from seeking employment within a BOPC capacity. He is also prohibited from applying for or accepting any private security licenses issued by the BOPC.
“As the situation involved closed personnel issues, the Department will not have further comment,” a KCPD spokesperson said Friday.
Last month, Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson announced her office’s findings in the June 2023 incident involving Newton, in which Newton shot and killed two people.
While Johnson determined that Newton’s actions were not criminal, she encouraged the department to review Newton’s continued employment.
“While employment decisions are addressed solely with KCPD and the Board of Police Commissioners, we trust their leadership will give our concerns serious consideration,” Johnson said on Jan. 21.
In the months following the deadly June 2023 encounter, family members of one of the victims killed by Newton filed a wrongful death lawsuit against KCPD. The BOPC settled the lawsuit in November 2025 for $3.3 million.
"I think that's a good thing for the community," attorney John Picerno said in a statement Friday afternoon to KSHB 41's Caitlin Knute. Picerno represented the family in the wrongful death lawsuit.
"We certainly don't need reckless law enforcement officers patrolling our streets," Picerno said. "The decision to shoot should be the last alternative for an officer. The overwhelming majority of officers perform admirably under difficult circumstances. An officer with his propensity for violence should never be allowed in the profession."
Picerno said he thought his clients would be relieved to find out about Newton's resignation.
Johnson’s January call to review Newton’s employment wasn’t the first time the prosecutor’s office brought up the issue.
It's not the first time the prosecutor's office has made such a recommendation.
In 2023, an advisory board under the administration of former Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker recommended Newton's employment be reconsidered.
In 2022, a $65,000 settlement was approved for excessive force involving Newton.
Steve Young, co-founder of the Kansas City Law Enforcement Accountability Project, said Friday that the resignation "is not justice. It is not transparency. And it is not reform."
"While his departure from the Kansas City Police Department may bring a measure of relief to those directly impacted, it does not constitute accountability," Young said in a statement. "If Mr. Newton retains his Missouri peace officer license, he remains legally permitted to serve in another community, placing other families at risk and perpetuating the same cycle of violence."
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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