Full title: RYAN FERGUSON, Plaintiff, v. JOHN SHORT, et al., Defendants.
Court: UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI CENTRAL DIVISION
Date published: Aug 14, 2015
Facts
Kent Heitholt was murdered in the Tribune’s parking lot on November 1, 2001. The Columbia Police Department received a 911 call from Jerry Trump, the manager for the Tribune’s cleaning crew. Officer Shanona McGeorge was dispatched to the scene, and upon arrival, Heitholt was found lying on the ground next to a vehicle. A maintenance worker informed Thompson that someone was outside hurt and lying in a pool of blood. Officer Baxley and Shawna Ornt, a member of the Tribune’s overnight maintenance staff, were dispatched to the scene. They saw individuals in the parking lot by a car, including a white male with a stocky build, possibly dark hair, and a ball cap. They then heard “somebody’s hurt, man” and began walking briskly east through an alleyway towards Fourth Street. Ornt and Trump were taken to the Columbia Police Department for further interviews. Ornt completed a composite with a detective, showing a white male with blonde hair flipped up at the front. They reiterated the descriptions of the night’s events to the officers at the Police Department.
Issue
Decision
For the reasons set forth above, summary judgment is granted for Defendants on Ferguson’s Count I and the Richard Walker evidence in Count II. Defendants’ motion is denied on the remainder of Ferguson’s claims. This order addresses only the parties’ arguments raised in the summary judgment motion and does not affect the overall admissibility of evidence at trial, which may be relevant to multiple claims in the lawsuit.