KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A lawsuit filed by the family of Pete Coones alleges Kansas City, Kansas, police were accomplices in his wrongful conviction.
Coones served 12 years in prison after being convicted of a murder he didn't commit.
He was released in 2020 after the Wyandotte County District Attorney dismissed his charges, citing new evidence. Coones died just months after being released from prison.
The lawsuit details how Kathleen Schroll, the caretaker of Coones' father, plotted her suicide and murder of her husband.
Schroll then framed Coones for the murders for the financial gain of her daughter.
The lawsuit alleges that responding officers in the case "conspired together to manufacture evidence against Mr. Coones and fabricated and suppressed evidence to secure his conviction."
It also accuses police of arresting Coones despite no evidence at the scene linking him to the murders.
The officers also allegedly fabricated statements from witnesses, among other allegations outlined in the lawsuit.
KSHB 41 has reached out to the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, and the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department for statements.
This story will be updated if a response is received.
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