Tennessee woman ordered to stand trial in fatal shooting of Johnson County police officer
A 33-year-old Tennessee woman will stand trial on a first-degree felony murder charge in the fatal shooting of Fairway police officer Jon Oswald last summer, a judge determined Monday.
Andrea Rene Cothran of Goodlettsville, Tennessee, appeared in Johnson County District Court for a preliminary hearing, where prosecutors presented their case against her.
Judge Michael P. Joyce found there was sufficient evidence for Cothran to stand trial on the murder charge, as well as charges of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, possession of a firearm by a felon and three counts of theft, all felonies. She also faces a misdemeanor charge of reckless driving.
Under the felony murder rule, accomplices are held culpable when someone is killed during the commission of a serious crime even if they were not the killer.
Cothran’s arraignment is scheduled for 8:45 a.m. on April 25.
Stolen vehicle leads to police chase, shooting
Oswald was killed Aug. 6 when officers from several police departments responded to reports of a dark blue Jeep Grand Cherokee that was stolen from Lenexa. Police pursued the vehicle north on Interstate 35 and the Jeep crashed on the exit ramp to Lamar Avenue.
Cothran and Shannon Wayne Marshall, 40, of Ashland City, Tennessee, then ran into the QuikTrip at 4700 Lamar Avenue in Mission. Oswald was critically wounded in a shootout that ensued and died in the hospital the following day. Marshall also was killed at the scene.
According to testimony, Cothran and Marshall allegedly traveled to the Kansas City area in a stolen Chevrolet Equinox taken from Tennessee.
Shanese Ndegwa said that a car she had rented to attend a family reunion was stolen when she stopped at a 7-11 in Goodlettsville. When she exited the store, she said the car was gone. Among the personal items inside the vehicle at the time it was taken was her handgun.
When shown a photo of the gun found inside the QuikTrip bathroom where Oswald was killed, Ndegwa said that it was hers. She recognized it because of scrapes and marks on it. The stolen vehicle was later found at a Walmart in Overland Park along with Cothran’s ID and other documents.
The vehicle theft that lead to the pursuit and the killing of Oswald occurred the morning of Aug. 6. Cory Wright testified he drove his grandmother’s Jeep Grand Cherokee to the QuikTrip near 95th Street and I-35 in Lenexa to pick up doughnuts as he was headed to his sister’s house. He left the SUV running because his dog was inside.
When he came out, the Jeep was gone. He ran looking for the SUV and saw it driving in circles in the nearby Radisson Hotel parking lot. He chased the vehicle and yelled at the woman driving it.
He said she yelled back that she was sorry but couldn’t go back to jail. Wright identified the woman as Cothran. About that time, a Lenexa police car showed up.
During the hearing, officers testified that Cothran tried to evade them by driving into the parking lot of another nearby hotel. Before the chase down I-35, Cothran allegedly rammed one of the officers and went over curbs and a grassy median to get away. Ultimately, she picked up Marshall and then fled north on I-35.
Lenexa police followed, and during the chase, speeds reached up to 120 mph. According to testimony, Cothran allegedly was weaving in and out of traffic. The Kansas Highway Patrol took the lead in the chase near the exit to Interstate 635. The pursuing officers said they lost sight of the Jeep and hadn’t noticed it had exited and wrecked.
Lenexa officer Stephanie Decker was one of the officers in pursuit. When she heard on the police radio that the fleeing SUV had crashed at Lamar, she circled back. Knowing the SUV was unoccupied, she headed to the QuikTrip to see if the suspects had run inside.
When she entered, she saw a man enter the men’s restroom and a woman enter the women’s restroom. She checked under the women’s restroom stall and saw someone inside. She had a male employee check the men’s restroom, and the employee said he had heard someone reply that someone was in there.
Decker returned to the women’s bathroom and noticed the feet were gone.
Decker testified that Cothran then stated she didn’t steal the car and didn’t do anything. Decker arrested Cothran and put her in handcuffs. Because other officers were positioning themselves to enter the men’s restroom, Decker waited with Cothran in the hallway.
Seconds later, the officers entered the men’s restroom and shots were fired. Decker said she pulled Cothran back towards an emergency exit. Cothran fell, and Decker pulled her out of the exit to safety.
Oswald was among the officers who entered the bathroom. They were led by Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Derek Kyser, who had his gun drawn.
Lenexa Officer Garrett Mahan, who also entered the men’s restroom, testified his role was to use a Taser on Marshall to try to subdue him with a less lethal method. Meanwhile, Oswald’s role was to attempt to get Marshall in handcuffs.
As they entered, Marshall started closing the stall door. Kyers attempted to kick the door open. Officers ordered Marshall to surrender, or he would be “tased.”
Kyser went into a nearby stall, and Mahan said he and Oswald tried pushing on the door.
“I saw a handgun come out in front of my face,” Mahan said. He then heard the gunfire and saw Oswald get struck in the head.
Mahan said he retreated out of the bathroom, and a call went out to dispatch that shots were fired and an officer was down.
Mission Police Officer Tanner Eddings opened the bathroom door and allegedly exchanged gunfire with Marshall from the hallway, according to a summary report previously released after Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe determined police acted lawfully.
Kyser, who was still in the nearby stall, reached over the top and fired at Marshall two or three times. Afterward, the trooper looked over and saw Marshall standing with a gun. Kyser fired another volley of bullets, according to the report.
