Man Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Deaths of Missouri Officer, Pedestrian

Twenty-year-old Jerron Lightfoot had a court hearing Friday where he pleaded guilty two counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter in the 2023 deaths of 42-year-old Kansas City Officer James Muhlbauer and 52-year-old Jesse Eckes.

February 26, 2024

Kansas City, Missouri, Officer James Muhlbauer and his K-9 champ were killed in a 2023 crash. The man responsible for their deaths has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.Kansas City, Missouri, Officer James Muhlbauer and his K-9 champ were killed in a 2023 crash. The man responsible for their deaths has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.Kansas City PD

A Kansas man accused of killing a Kansas City, Missouri, police officer, a pedestrian, and a K-9 in a crash has changed his plea to guilty.

Twenty-year-old Jerron Lightfoot had a court hearing Friday where he pleaded guilty two counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter in the 2023 deaths of 42-year-old Kansas City Officer James Muhlbauer and 52-year-old Jesse Eckes. 

Muhlbauer’s K9, Champ, also died in the crash, but Lightfoot was not charged in the dog’s death, Fox 4 KC reports.

Lightfoot is scheduled for sentencing on April 24.

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