On July 28, 2016, police officers in Kansas City, Missouri, were dispatched to the Stonewall Court apartment complex in the 2500 block of Independence Avenue following reports of a disturbance. Residents had called 911 around 5:08 a.m. after hearing approximately eight or nine gunshots followed by screaming. Upon arriving at the scene, law enforcement encountered a naked male outside the building who appeared to be under the influence of narcotics.
The individual, identified as 31-year-old Derrick A. Williams, was visibly agitated and made spontaneous statements to the officers, confessing that he had killed someone inside the residence.
Officers approached the apartment building and were directed by a witness to a semi-automatic handgun with an extended clip that had been thrown by the suspect. Inside the second-story apartment, police discovered a harrowing scene. Bullet holes were visible in the walls, and three young children were found hiding under a blanket for safety. One of the children informed the officers that Williams had killed their mother. During a search of the premises, authorities located the lifeless body of 32-year-old female Denise Gayle in the bathroom. She had suffered fatal gunshot wounds.
The investigation revealed that the children had been subjected to violence during the incident. One child had sustained a head injury after being struck with the firearm by Williams, while another child reported that the suspect had placed the gun in her mouth. Williams was taken into custody at the scene and transported to a local hospital for evaluation due to his intoxication before being moved to a police facility.
Prosecutors charged Williams with second-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action, and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. In July 2017, nearly a year after the homicide, Williams appeared in Jackson County Circuit Court and entered a guilty plea to second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault, and three counts of armed criminal action. A judge subsequently sentenced him to serve 28 years in prison for the murder charge, with concurrent sentences of 15 years for the other offenses.
