Feds won’t pursue civil rights charge on Overland Park officer who killed John Albers

Federal civil rights charges will not be filed against the former Overland Park police officer who shot and killed 17-year-old John Albers, officials announced Friday.

The U.S. Department of Justice’s investigation was focused on determining if former officer Clayton Jenison used unreasonable force and if he did so “willfully,” the federal agency said in a two-page news release.

Investigators agreed with a federal judge who ruled that a jury could conclude the officer had used unreasonable force. But it found “there is insufficient evidence to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer willfully committed a violatation of the federal criminal civil rights statute.”

The U.S. Supreme Court’s definition is that an officer “acted with a bad purpose to disregard the law,” the news release said.

The FBI acknowledged in September 2020 that the agency was investigating the shooting.

The Albers family has long awaited the decision. DOJ officials met with the family before their Friday announcement.

Sheila Albers, John’s mother, said it was not the outcome they wanted, but it was not a total loss.

The DOJ’s news release says that John Albers’ death was “an unnecessary tragedy” and that the agency’s decision “should not be read as anything more than a determination that the department cannot prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, every element of the federal criminal statute, to include willfulness.”

In a statement, Sheila Albers also called for significant changes” within law enforcement, including more crisis intervention training and accountability.

“Now, it is up to our local city and county leaders to overhaul the Officer Involved Shooting Investigation Team process to make it impartial, thorough, transparent, and accountable to the entire community — attributes that do not define the current policy,” she said.

The city said it fully cooperated with the federal investigation.

“The Overland Park Police Department strives to de-escalate and prevent the need for use of force whenever possible,” a statement from the city said. “This situation was tragic, and we at the City continue to keep the Albers family in our thoughts.”

Officer shoots teen in crisis

On Jan. 20, 2018, Overland Park police were called to a welfare check at the Albers’ home. As the teenager was backing the family minivan out of the driveway, Jenison fired 13 shots at him, striking him six times.

Jenison said he feared for his life and opened fire after Albers ignored commands to stop.

The case was investigated by Johnson County’s Officer Involved Shooting Investigation Team.

One month later, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe announced that the officer would not be charged.

The city paid Jenison a $70,000 severance and reported to the state police licensing agency that he left voluntarily “under ordinary circumstances.”

The shooting became a source of contention as Albers’ family and other community members questioned the lethal use of force and began advocating for transparency from the police department. KSHB 41 Action News and The Star filed lawsuits for documents related to the case.

In April 2021, the city released a 498-page report on the shooting. It contained several narratives from officers who responded to the scene, a dispatch report, an autopsy report and other records. Overland Park officials said the report represented “a complete and thorough investigation.”

But the next month, The Star obtained a lab report that was not included in the initial report. It showed each of the bullets fired at the teen entered through the side of the minivan, answering some questions about Jenison’s positioning and whether he was in the vehicle’s path. The report was dated March 5, 2018, weeks after the DA’s office had already decided Jenison would not face charges.

Then in June 2021, the City of Overland Park said it had found hundreds of photos from the investigation in an unlabeled folder. The photos were released to the public, but Sheila Albers said at the time that the discovery “once again calls into question the integrity of the investigation.”

“It continues to erode the public trust in our local government.”