Bond hearing delayed for alleged Chiefs rally shooter after he lands back in hospital
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Star policy is to use booking mugs only in the highest profile of crimes, and thus is publishing a booking photo for Lyndell Mays, who was taken to the Jackson County Detention Center after being treated at a hospital. The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office has said that a booking photo is not yet available for Dominic M. Miller, also charged, because he is still at the hospital and has not yet been photographed.
A Jackson County judge continued a bond hearing for one of the men accused of murder in the fatal mass shooting at the Chiefs Super Bowl victory rally after prosecutors said he was unable to appear because he was back in the hospital.
Judge Jerri J. Zhang rescheduled the bond review hearing 23-year-old Lyndell Mays of Raytown for 10 a.m. Monday in Division 26 of Jackson County Circuit Court.
Capt. Ronda Montgomery confirmed that Mays is a current inmate, but was unable to comment regarding the condition of his health.
Prosecutors charged Mays last week with one count each of second-degree felony murder and unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. Mays, who is not yet represented by an attorney, is being held on a $1 million cash only bond.
The shooting killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a Johnson County mother of two and beloved disc jockey in Kansas City. Two dozen others were injured by gunfire and at least 18 others were hurt in the stampede that followed as people rushed from the scene and sought cover. Roughly half of those injured by gunfire were under the age of 16.
Dominic M. Miller of Kansas City, 18, is also charged with one count each of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action.
Prosecutors allege that the shooting at the rally following the parade stemmed from an altercation between two groups arguing about “why they were staring at each other,” according to according to probable cause affidavits. Miller was in one group and Mays was in the other.
“Mays pulled his handgun first,” Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said during a press conference last week while announcing the charges.
Almost immediately, others, including Miller , allegedly pulled their firearms. Mays allegedly acknowledged he began firing at the others first, according to the affidavits.
While both men were charged with murder, evidence shows that it was gunfire from Miller’s firearm that struck and killed Lopez-Galvan, Baker said.
Missouri laws says that a person who did not pull the trigger can still be charged when someone is killed during the commission of a dangerous felony.
Miller has remained hospitalized since the shooting and has not yet been booked into Jackson County jail. No court date has been set for him. His cash bond has also been set at $1 million.
Miller’s attorney, Ruth Petsch with the Missouri Public Defender’s office, has filed a motion for Miller asking that he be released on personal recognizance or have his bond lowered. Miller is unable to post bond in the amount currently set and if released, he would appear as directed and would abide by any conditions imposed, Petsch said in the motion.
Prosecutors previously charged two minors with “gun-related” crimes and resisting arrest in relation to the shooting. Their names have not been released.
The Jackson County Prosecutor also has charged 36-year-old Jose L. Castillo with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after he allegedly picked up a firearm that was dropped during the shooting.
Castillo has been released after posting $2,500 of a $25,000 bond. His next court appearance is set for 1:30 p.m. on March 26. As condition of his release, he can not possess or be in the presence of firearms or ammunition, nor can he possess or consume alcohol or controlled substances unless lawfully prescribed.
