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Who Are the New KC Shooting Suspects?

Mia Cathell
Mia Cathell  |  February 21, 2024 3:30 PM

As Matt reported, two adult males have been charged with murder and other weapons-related felonies in connection to the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting that left a mother dead and dozens, including many young children, injured on February 14.

Booking page featuring the mugshot of Lyndell Mays

18-year-old Dominic Michael Miller, of Kansas City, and 23-year-old Lyndell "Dell" Mays, of Raytown, are facing felony charges of second-degree murder, armed criminal action (two counts), and unlawful use of a weapon, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker's office announced Tuesday in a press release. Both shooting suspects are being held on $1 million bond.

Facebook profile with URL and birth date matching Lyndell "Dell Peie" Mays

Apparently, Mays was fresh off of a two-year probation deal prior to the shooting, court records reviewed by Townhall reveal. 

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Mays was previously charged with disorderly conduct for "display[ing] a black handgun during a dispute while playing basketball" at the Belton Community Center, causing players to fear for their safety and run out of the gym, according to 2021 municipal court documents Townhall has obtained. On February 8, 2022, Mays entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation after a majority of his 90-day jail sentence was suspended/stayed, criminal records show.

According to charging documents that detail the deadly mass shooting, a verbal altercation led to a gunfight among armed thugs.

A female witness (Witness 9) said she was with Mays when a group of men asked "what he was looking at." The witness's boyfriend (Witness 13) corroborated that the two groups were arguing about "why they were staring at each other." Then, Mays advanced toward the opposing group in "an aggressive manner," detectives observed in surveillance footage. Attempting to de-escalate, Witness 9 put her hand on Mays to try to stop him, but he angrily pointed his finger at them, police statements allege.

Mays admitted he was the first to produce a firearm in a crowd where children were gathered and fired first, although the suspect stated he hesitated shooting since he "knew there were kids there." Believing they all could have had guns, Mays randomly picked one of the individuals to target out of "fear" for Witness 9's life. So, he started shooting in the direction of the target he chose at random—all because they allegedly threatened, "I'm going to get you," which he interpreted as, "I'm going to kill you."

Mays, wearing a red long-sleeved shirt, was allegedly shooting at someone who was running away from him and appeared to be unarmed. When told he was firing at a fleeing person, Mays said, "I know." Questioned further about why he approached the other group, Mays replied: "Stupid, man. Just pulled a gun out and started shooting. I shouldn't have done that. Just being stupid."

In response, the others were seen pulling out firearms from backpacks, and a gun battle ensued.

At an area hospital, Mays initially gave police a statement that was "inconsistent" with what security cameras captured. When informed that the incident was filmed, he changed his story. Mays originally stated he didn't think he fired his gun. Advised that he did indeed shoot, Mays claimed he didn't hit anything though. Mays then stated he only shot once, then said maybe two times.

A pistol, as well as spent shell casings, were located next to a wounded Mays. Specifically, multiple 9mm and .40 caliber spent shell casings were collected nearby. A Glock 9mm handgun was discovered—drenched in blood—where Mays fell to the ground after being shot. The magazine contained six live 9mm rounds in a 15-round capacity magazine, and there was a live round in the chamber. A computer check revealed that the firearm was stolen out of Kansas City, per probable cause statements.

Miller, wearing a red Calvin Klein zip-up jacket and a red Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl champions jersey, was witnessed carrying a black Taurus G3 9mm handgun near his waistband. After hearing gunshots, Miller spotted a black male with dreads shooting at him so he returned fire, a police affidavit says. At one point, Miller tripped over a traffic cone while still shooting.

Miller estimated that he had fired four to five shots but was uncertain if he even hit his intended target. An autopsy of Elizabeth "Lisa" Lopez-Galvan, the 43-year-old mother of two whose life was tragically taken, recovered a .38 caliber class bullet from her body. A ballistic comparison determined that the stray bullet that fatally struck Lopez-Galvan was fired from Miller's firearm. [Editor's note: Townhall acknowledges that the calibers do not match, but has not confirmed with police if this is a clerical error or not.]

During the exchange of gunfire, Miller was observed shouting, "I'm shot. I'm shot." Medical personnel tending to Miller, who was struck in the lower back, found a firearm magazine with live ammunition inside a wagon used to transport him from the scene.

Miller was charged on Monday night while Mays was charged on the preceding Saturday morning, but Baker's office had asked for the charges to be sealed since the investigation was "so active and ongoing," the top prosecutor told reporters at Tuesday's press conference. Baker said she was "not at liberty" to talk about those charges, which were just unsealed by the court, until now.

The chief prosecutor stated that this is the latest round of charges filed in response to the fatal shooting and more are to come. "We seek to hold every shooter accountable for their actions on that day, every single one," Baker said. "We are not done yet."

Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) Chief Stacey Graves stated in a news release issued Tuesday: "Our investigation continues at full velocity. Teams of detectives are working nonstop to ensure that anyone else responsible for the shootings is apprehended and that they receive the maximum punishment allowed by law [...] We will not relent in our pursuit of justice."

Summarizing the timeline of events, Baker broke down what investigators believe happened. Mays got into an argument with another individual, she recapped. "The evidence does not reflect [...] that there was any prior history between these individuals," Baker said, referring to Mays and the stranger he was in a verbal dispute with. "There was no connection to each other." The quarrel quickly escalated to Mays drawing his handgun, prompting others, including Miller, to do the same "almost immediately."

Numerous names were redacted in the police reports filed in Mays and Miller's criminal cases.

Miller and Mays were charged in addition to the two teens arrested last week on gun and resisting arrest offenses. Those two teenagers, whose identities are being withheld, are currently being prosecuted as juveniles in family court. However, depending on the seriousness of the charges that could be piled on as the probe continues, the unnamed teens may be tried as adults. A mandatory certification hearing would have to be held, which requires first-degree assault and murder accusations for a defendant to be certified to stand trial as an adult. This would transfer the cases under the purview of Baker's office.

Juvenile cases are typically kept private under Missouri law and hearings are not open to the public.

Miller remains hospitalized as of Wednesday while May has been booked into the Jackson County Detention Center.

If bailed out, Miller and May's bond conditions stipulate that they must wear GPS ankle bracelets; not have contact with witnesses, victims, or co-defendants; not possess or be near any firearms or ammunition; and stay away from Union Station. 

Of the parade-goers caught in the crossfire, at least half are under the age of 16, with the ages of the victims ranging from eight to 47. Two elementary-aged sisters, a 10-year-old in a Patrick Mahomes jersey, and a mother protecting her kids were among those injured. Officials with Children's Mercy said that all of the children injured in the shooting have been released from the hospital.