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Kansas City, Kansas, Police Chief Karl Oakman is expressing concern that a woman recently killed in a domestic violence case may have been reluctant to seek help because of her immigration status.
Around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31, officers were called to a shooting at a home in the 1000 block of Orville Avenue.
When officers arrived, they found a man and a woman dead, and another man injured.
"The victim was shot and killed by an ex-boyfriend, and then the ex-boyfriend was killed by a friend that was at the victim's residence," Oakman explained.
The male friend who shot and killed the suspect was taken to the hospital, treated and released.
Police identified the woman killed as 20-year-old Ingris Carolina Damas Morales. The suspect in the case was identified as 43-year-old Josue Avila-Carcamo.
In an interview Tuesday, the chief told me Morales had reached out to police for help late last year, but a temporary order of protection against her ex-boyfriend had since lapsed.
Oakman said he wonders if news reports and rumors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations left the woman concerned about reaching out for help again, given the fact she had an ICE detainer (or immigration hold) on her record.
"We don’t know for a fact, but you know, you can make the assumption that she didn’t really follow up with services because of her immigration status," Oakman said.
He added the suspect was a U.S. citizen, but the friend who tried to save the woman was not.
As for potential victims who might be reluctant to come forward because of the current political climate, Oakman said, "We are here to protect and serve the community regardless of your immigration status. We always give support to victims of crime, regardless of that."
Oakman also clarified his officers aren’t actively checking a victim's status if they call for help.
"When it comes to the victim's side of things, that’s really not going to come up unless there’s a reason for it," Oakman said. "Now, on the suspect's side, yes. I mean, if they go to detention, they’re going to run them and check and make sure. And we run suspects and all of that."
Beyond urging people to call 911 if they have an emergency, despite any immigration fears, the chief also called for people to stop spreading rumors and misinformation about large ICE raids in Kansas City, Kansas.
"We do work with ICE on criminal investigations involving narcotics, trafficking, gang activity and violent crime," Oakman said. "But, I’ve been a chief here for four-and-a-half years, and I haven’t received one phone call from ICE asking KCKPD to help or assist in an immigration operation. Nor have I had one ICE agent at any school in KCK."
Oakman added that people who are anti-ICE and think they're protecting their neighbors are actually hurting them because they're spreading misinformation that leads to widespread fears.
"So my message to people would be, just talk about the facts," he said. "Do not make up stuff because it’s affecting people, and it’s putting that fear that, you know, what we see in Minnesota, that that’s going to be in Kansas City, Kansas. And that’s just not the case."
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