Family of ex-KC cop Eric DeValkenaere asks MO governor for clemency after appeal failed

The family of a former Kansas City police detective, whose manslaughter conviction in the shooting death of a Black man was upheld last week by the Missouri Court of Appeals, has filed a clemency request with Gov. Mike Parson.

Eric J. DeValkenaere, who is white, had been found guilty at trial in Jackson County in 2021 on charges of second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action. Sentenced to six years in prison, he remained free on bond while he appealed his conviction.

Johnathan Shiflett, a spokesperson for Parson, a Republican, said in an email to The Star that DeValkenaere’s family attorneys submitted a request for clemency to Parson’s office. The office has also received “hundreds of additional calls and requests from private citizens on his behalf.”

“Governor Parson has made no decision regarding clemency for Mr. DeValkenaere at this time,” the email said. Shiflett said the clemency request was a closed record and he could not provide The Star with a copy.

The Missouri Constitution gives Parson the power to delay, reduce or eliminate the punishment of state-level crimes. The clemency process ranges from a full pardon of a criminal conviction to a reprieve — the temporary suspension or delay of a criminal sentence.

DeValkenaere remained in protective custody in the Platte County jail Tuesday after he surrendered to authorities last week when the Missouri Court of Appeals decided to uphold his conviction in the killing of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb. DeValkenaere shot and killed Lamb as he was backing his pickup truck into his garage in November 2019.

Sarah DeValkenaere appeared Tuesday morning on the Pete Mundo radio talk show and said she has filed a clemency petition with Parson’s office.

“We have submitted a clemency packet directly to the governor’s office and I just hope that, I know he’s a former law enforcement officer himself. I know he has firsthand knowledge of how hard these men and women work each day and how sometimes they’re put into life-and-death situations where they have to make quick decisions,” Sarah DeValkenaere said in the radio interview.

She could not be reached for comment on Tuesday.

‘Really sick and tired’

In June, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker sent a letter to Parson urging him not to pardon DeValkenaere.

Parson, a former sheriff of Polk County, told reporters at the time that he has the power to pardon DeValkenaere even if he did not apply for clemency.

Last week, after the court upheld DeValkenaere’s conviction, Parson’s office issued a statement saying Parson was aware of the court’s decision and was assessing the situation.

“Governor Parson will give the same thorough review to Mr. DeValkenaere’s case that he gives to all others that come across his desk. No decision regarding a pardon has been made at this time,” Shiflett said.

Lamb’s family and community activists have pleaded with Parson not to issue a pardon or grant clemency to DeValkenaere.

Laurie Bey, Lamb’s mother said she was upset with the clemency petition.

“They’re still not accepting responsibility for the killing of my son,” Bey told The Star. “I’m not happy about it. I’m really sick and tired. I hope that Gov. Parson does not consider it.”

In a rare decision by a Jackson County judge, DeValkenaere had been allowed to remain free on bond nearly two years while he appealed the November 2021 criminal conviction. DeValkenaere is the first Kansas City police officer to be convicted in the shooting death of a Black man.

Gwen Grant, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City, said Parson should recognize that to grant clemency or a pardon because DeValkenaere is a former police officer is “blatantly disrespectful to the victim and his family.”

“This request for clemency is yet another attempt to skirt justice. DeValkenaere needs to do the time for his crime. Period,” Grant said in a written statement emailed to The Star.

“I believe six years was a lenient sentence for this former cop who killed an unarmed Black man while violating his 4th Amendment rights and tampering with evidence at the crime scene.

Grant continued: “Cameron was killed for nothing more than a traffic violation. His life should mean something to the Governor, the FOP, the Police Chief, and all DeValkenaere supporters who believe Cameron does not deserve justice.”

Pushing for another release

On Wednesday, after being in jail for one day, DeValkenaere sought through a new court filing to be released on bond again.

In a court filing seeking to have DeValkenaere released a second time, attorney Jonathan Laurans wrote that the former police officer had not violated any conditions of previous bond set down by the Jackson County court in February 2022.

DeValkenaere was not a flight risk, and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office has not objected to the motion.

Bailey, a Republican whose office is responsible for arguing on behalf of the state, instead agreed that the involuntary manslaughter conviction should have been overturned.

It will likely take a week before the Court of Appeals rules on the bond request.

DeValkenaere is expected to be taken to prision while he waits for the court’s decision. He could be assigned to one of the Missouri Department of Corrections’ three reception and diagnostic facilities for men in St. Joseph, Bonne Terre or Fulton, according to state officials.