A group funded by rap mogul Jay-Z is suing a Kansas City (KS) Police Department for access to records of alleged officer misconduct.
Jay-Z's Team Roc filed a lawsuit in the district court of Wyandotte County, Kansas, on Monday against the Kansas City Police Department, accusing KCKPD of covering up alleged police misconduct.
Team Roc is suing for access to records that, according to the lawsuit, would shed light on complaints filed against members of KCKPD's investigative division, including documents related to the training and supervision of KCKPD officers.
Attorney Alex Spiro, who represents Team Roc in the suit, told ABC News that while the KCKPD provided some information requested through the Kansas Open Records Act, the documents the department provided were "not sufficient."
"Because of the [Kansas] Public Records Act that allows interested parties to look at various states and government documents, we're allowed to see certain files and how the government handled certain issues," Spiro said. "The government has attempted to block our access to those files, and so we're suing to see what they don't want us to see."
The lawsuit alleges that KCKPD has agreed to provide documents "pertaining to the complaints made against members of the Investigative Division," but has "refused to produce documents pertaining to any steps that the City has taken in response to those Complaints, including any investigations or disciplinary proceedings initiated as a result of the complaints."
The suit filed on Monday references several reported incidents, including an officer who is charged with committing sex crimes involving a minor, two officers charged with a felony and misdemeanor assault over the mistreatment of an inmate, officers indicted on charges of stealing from homes where they were serving search warrants as well as a federal lawsuit in which a black female KCKPD officer sued the department for alleged race and gender discrimination.
According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, some exceptions to the Kansas Open Records Act include criminal investigation records, criminal intelligence information and "most personnel records."
The lawsuit states that Team Roc is "seeking documents outside of the scope of personnel records to determine if "complaints are being seriously addressed and whether there is sufficient oversight and supervision over the KCKPD."
Jay-Z, through his company Tidal, has donated $1.5 million to Black Lives Matter and other anti-police groups.
