Missouri Governor Mike Parson has decided to commute the prison sentence of a former Kansas City police officer who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the tragic shooting of a Black man.
Missouri Governor Parson made the decision to release former police detective Eric DeValkenaere from prison. This decision, along with several other commutations and pardons, was announced in a press release on Friday afternoon. Governor Parson did not provide an explanation for his decision, but it had been anticipated as he had previously hinted at making such a move before his term ends next month.
In 2021, DeValkenaere, a white man, was found guilty of the murder of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb and sentenced to six years in prison.
On the morning of December 3, 2019, DeValkenaere received a call on his police radio to investigate a speeding driver in the city streets. The driver, Lamb, had parked his pickup truck in a driveway and was reversing into a garage.
DeValkenaere, who was not wearing a police uniform, entered the property by knocking down a makeshift fence. Just nine seconds later, he fired a shot at Lamb, who was sitting in his pickup truck after making a phone call.
DeValkenaere stated that he discharged his weapon in response to Lamb aiming a gun at his partner. According to reports, Lamb was discovered in his vehicle, with his upper body protruding from the driver’s side window, and a handgun lying on the ground beside his left hand.
The prosecution has argued that someone deliberately planted the gun.
Jackson County Judge J. Dale Youngs found DeValkenaere guilty of second-degree involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action. According to the judge, the officer did not have the legal authority to enter Lamb’s property, and the shooting was deemed unconstitutional.
In the subsequent events, the verdict has been upheld by an appeals court panel. The case was further denied review by the Missouri Supreme Court. Additionally, a federal judge has made a ruling in a civil case, stating that DeValkenaere had violated Lamb’s constitutional rights.
DeValkenaere has been granted parole by Parson, as stated in the official commutation document. This means that he will be released from prison, but will still be under the supervision and conditions set by the Parole Board.
Parson’s decision was criticized by those who pointed out that he has consistently declined to get involved in cases where Black men were wrongfully convicted.
House Minority Leader Ashley Aune, a Kansas City Democrat, expressed her deep anguish over the tragic fate of Cameron Lamb’s children, who will never have the opportunity to celebrate Christmas with their father, unlike Eric DeValkenaere. She lamented the absence of justice in this heartbreaking situation.
