A 39-year-old Kansas City man is facing a second-degree murder charge after a woman was found fatally shot inside his room at Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence, with surveillance footage reportedly showing him enter and the door close, then the door open shortly afterward as the victim appeared to struggle to breathe. James F. Lawson was also charged with armed criminal action and unlawful possession of a firearm, and a judge has set his bond at $250,000 cash only.
Officers responded to Centerpoint Medical Center at 19600 E. 39th St. around 9:30 a.m. Thursday, according to court documents cited by KMBC, where they found a woman deceased with a gunshot wound. KCTV5 reported that the wound was to her chest. Officers quickly located Lawson at a nearby strip mall, and he was found with a holster on his hip and ammunition in his wheelchair, according to KCTV5's account.
What the Surveillance Footage Reportedly Shows
According to the KMBC report, surveillance video recorded outside the room showed Lawson entering at approximately 1:37 a.m. and shutting the door. Shortly afterward, the door opened and Lawson was seen facing the victim, who appeared to struggle to breathe.
An overnight nurse told investigators that Lawson's girlfriend was in his room and that he repeatedly left and returned to the unit overnight, the station's report states. The nurse said she heard a loud noise resembling someone falling and a separate, unusual female vocalization, but she could not provide times for the sounds or identify their source. She told investigators she looked into Lawson's room twice during the night and saw the victim lying on her side, and she believed the woman was simply asleep. The nurse said she saw no blood or injuries and did not observe any suspicious or unusual behavior between the two.
Lawson's Account to Detectives
When questioned, Lawson said he remembered the victim as his girlfriend but did not know what happened to her, attributing his confusion to delirium from a severe urinary tract infection, per the court documents described in the same report. He also said his recollection of the night was “fuzzy” because of his medical condition and medications, and at one point told an investigator, “the cameras say it all.”
Lawson told detectives he did not remember what happened or where the firearm was, but said a gun had been inside a van he shared with the victim. He directed police to look near a curb behind a building but could not identify which building, and he gave no explanation for the victim's gunshot wound. He acknowledged that the holster found on him had been with the firearm and said the ammunition in his wheelchair had been there for a long time. He acknowledged being a convicted felon prohibited from possessing a gun. He later requested an attorney, then called an investigator back, said he did not want anyone hurt and suggested they look for a darker-colored firearm.
A Lengthy Criminal History
Court records cited in the report show Lawson has a history of arrests and convictions involving burglary, robbery, assault, armed criminal action, escaping custody and other charges. Under Missouri law, second-degree murder is classified as a Class A felony, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes.
The shooting adds to a troubling national pattern documented by health and safety researchers. Data cited by the Associated Press shows that American health care workers now suffer more nonfatal injuries from workplace violence than workers in any other profession, including law enforcement. The Missouri Hospital Association has pointed to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures finding that 52% of all recorded workplace violence incidents occur in health care settings, and Stateline has reported that doctors and nurses nationwide face assaults ranging from punching and choking to shootings as states weigh new responses.
