MO - Off-duty officer (Katlyn Alix) shot dead by on-duty officer (Nathaniel Hendren), Jan 2019

[GordianKnot]

Great questions @Willow Knight.

I'm hoping that this information is also revealed during the promised transparent investigation, together with the Officer's Disciplinary Reports filed on Jan 24, 2019 (still trying to locate).

BBM: Ha, Seattle, I'm thinking the reason we were promised "transparency" is because the investigation is going to be so nearly nonexistent that it will be naked to the human eye.

 

[Indy Anna]

There is also something about the black eye of NH...it did look like a 2nd or 3rd day eye. Because usually there is a lot more blood in the vitreous, seriously blood red eye right after trauma. The blood moves out of the eye over the next day. NH's picture, with black eye, has a clear vitreous.

Anyone else want to discuss eye anatomy and black eye evolution?

JMO, I think it depends on whether a person is hit directly in the eye or suffers a blow to the forehead. Just from personal experience (I once got a black eye from hitting my head in a car accident and my sister recently developed a black eye after surgery on her forehead), the eye doesn't become discolored immediately after a blow to the head. The discoloration occurs as gravity causes blood from broken blood vessels in the forehead to drain downward.

A blow directly to the eye would likely cause discoloration in and around the eye much sooner, IMO.

 

[norest4thewicked]

Drugs would explain the head butting and the whole situation. Cocaine? Meth? Bath salts? Spice? Or a combination of drugs. How common is angel dust in Missouri?

IMO, anyone stupid enough to shoot someone in the chest in a "game" wouldn't really need drugs or alcohol to head butt a window.

 

[cybervampira]

IMO, anyone stupid enough to shoot someone in the chest in a "game" wouldn't really need drugs or alcohol to head butt a window.

That’s the big question. Were two people stupid enough to play RRR, plus a third one who didn’t interfer?

I see these possibilities:
- It’s too crazy to be true. Something else happened.
- It happened the way it was described. Drugs/alcohol involved.
- It happened the way it was described. No drugs/alcohol involved, just stupidity.

#3 is the most unlikely IMO.

 

[GarAndTeed]

That’s the big question. Were two people stupid enough to play RRR, plus a third one who didn’t interfer?

I see these possibilities:
- It’s too crazy to be true. Something else happened.
- It happened the way it was described. Drugs/alcohol involved.
- It happened the way it was described. No drugs/alcohol involved, just stupidity.

#3 is the most unlikely IMO.

I can't buy #3 at all- just saying...#2 is dicey.

 

[norest4thewicked]

Negative. I suspect he may have either : a) had a past relationship w/her and resented or was jealous of her recent marriage; b) had a current relationship w/ her and see above; c) was friends w/ her but had unreciprocated romantic feelings for her and made an unwanted advance that night toward her that she rebuffed.

I lean toward the bolded scenario.

JMO.

Why would she be at HIS apartment if she rebuffed him? Doesn't make sense to me.

 

[Indy Anna]

I can't buy #3 at all- just saying...#2 is dicey.

I agree. If they were 2 teenagers playing with a gun, I could buy that scenario. But these were 2 military trained, police academy trained adults who worked with guns professionally. I can't believe they were that irresponsible.

 

[norest4thewicked]

I found this in one of the articles (stated by the other officer there in the apartment):

"He advised that he told the defendant and victim that they shouldn't be playing with guns and that they were police officers," the statement reads. "He felt uncomfortable ... and he started to leave."

The partner says that he left the room but heard the shot while still in the apartment and returned to find Alix shot in the chest.

I can only imagine how uncomfortable he was when he realized what was happening.

 

[Psychofcrime]

JMO, I think it depends on whether a person is hit directly in the eye or suffers a blow to the forehead. Just from personal experience (I once got a black eye from hitting my head in a car accident and my sister recently developed a black eye after surgery on her forehead), the eye doesn't become discolored immediately after a blow to the head. The discoloration occurs as gravity causes blood from broken blood vessels in the forehead to drain downward.

A blow directly to the eye would likely cause discoloration in and around the eye much sooner, IMO.

Remember, he head butted the window of the car the night of the shooting, Thursday. I'm pretty sure the mugshot wasn't taken until he was taken into custody (from the hospital) on Monday. So the black eye was 4 days old at the time of the photo. I'm not a doctor but from what has been posted on here, it sounds like blood can "pool" around the eye coming from other areas. Other than that, I am clueless about what the injury tells us.

 

[norest4thewicked]

Remember, he head butted the window of the car the night of the shooting, Thursday. I'm pretty sure the mugshot wasn't taken until he was taken into custody (from the hospital) on Monday. So the black eye was 4 days old at the time of the photo. I'm not a doctor but from what has been posted on here, it sounds like blood can "pool" around the eye coming from other areas. Other than that, I am clueless about what the injury tells us.

I think it tells nothing more than his head butting a window. Most often, the simplest story is the true one. Occam's Razor and all.

 

[Psychofcrime]

St. Louis cop Nathaniel Hendren was on patrol with Officer Alix two days before her death | Daily Mail Online

This article is interesting. Alix worked with NH two nights earlier.

The timeline is interesting as well.

12:14 am, NH and PR call in regarding false alarm.

12:56 Alix admitted to ER

1:07 Alix declared dead

NH worked with PR two nights after working with Alix. This was the 3rd night.

I wish we had more information, like cell phone records. And text messages, if there were more between Alix and NH since their last shift, or significantly less.

So, the 2 officers picked up sandwiches at Subway on the way home, they entered the apartment around 12:35 or so, per their report. In less than 20 minutes later, Alix was at the ER, which is a 7 minute drive from NH apartment. So, we are from 12:56, to 12:49 for drive. Add 5 minutes for getting Alix from apartment to car, that is 12:45.

They went from drinking beer and eating sandwiches to "RRR" within 5 minutes. Honestly, I just don't see that timeline working at all. If we believe the "RRR" story, I would be more likely to accept it, if they had been drinking and horsing around for an hour or so, stupid stuff like that seems "reasonable" at 2 am, when people are drunk and stupid. It doesn't quite work as well when there is 10 minutes of eating, drinking one beer.

Just the timeline makes me think that this was planned for some reason. I know how acrimonious work relationships can get...

(Note, I remember one article that mentioned that they stopped for sandwiches and brought them home, can't find it now).

Totally agree! I hadn't heard about the sandwich run which narrows the time line even more, like you said.
What happened in those 5 to 10 minutes?

 

[norest4thewicked]

Perhaps this all started the night that NH and KA rode together. Maybe they were talking about how brave they each were or he was teasing her about being a female officer. I don't mean this in a bad way. I just know from working in LE some years ago that teasing happens. Her being off that night was possibly the first chance that she had to "prove to him" that she had what it takes. Sad, but I can see it happening.

 

[Psychofcrime]

I think it tells nothing more than his head butting a window. Most often, the simplest story is the true one. Occam's Razor and all.

I was only responding to the few that were discussing the black eye. Personally, I am not concerned about it.
What I am concerned about is the elaborate RRR story fitting in to the timeline.
It flat out doesn't work....Occam's razor and all.

 

[SoCalDavidS]

Heck, if they stopped at Subway, even that is a relevant issue to investigate. Did they buy her a sandwich, and how much did they eat? That would narrow the timeline as well, if they had time to eat their sandwiches.

 

[Seattle1]

Why would she be at HIS apartment if she rebuffed him? Doesn't make sense to me.

And why would she have recently transferred to crappy District #2 if she wanted distance from him. I do believe these 3 were close friends that reportedly spent a lot of hours together both on and off the clock. I believe NH had a new revolver he was showing off and he shot her. But why the RRR story?

 

[Seattle1]

Heck, if they stopped at Subway, even that is a relevant issue to investigate. Did they buy her a sandwich, and how much did they eat? That would narrow the timeline as well, if they had time to eat their sandwiches.

I'm not familiar with the Subway diversion. NH and PR were reportedly going to meet up with KA in there work zone but the on duty officers changed the plan. Were they suppose to meet at Subway originally? Why did they change the plan to meet at NH apartment?

 

[GordianKnot]

Heck, if they stopped at Subway, even that is a relevant issue to investigate. Did they buy her a sandwich, and how much did they eat? That would narrow the timeline as well, if they had time to eat their sandwiches.

The timeline is so tight already, it's hard to imagine them having time to wolf down a sub in the interim, too.

Timeline really makes "accidental" shooting unlikely, IMO.

The only thing I could see in my mind's eye for accidental scenarios with that brief a window is NH thinking KA was an intruder (like if she got to the apartment first and/or hadn't announced herself when entering the apartment).

But that's not the story they produced, so that can be ruled out.

Something other than "accidental" shooting would better explain this timeline.

JMO.

 

[GordianKnot]

And why would she have recently transferred to crappy District #2 if she wanted distance from him. I do believe these 3 were close friends that reportedly spent a lot of hours together both on and off the clock. I believe NH had a new revolver he was showing off and he shot her. But why the RRR story?

I would have half-believed a showing off a new gun story if they hadn't concocted the RRR one.

The fact that they manufactured the RRR story means the showing off a new toy one is also untrue, IMO.

I say that because the showing off a new gun story would have been so much less damning than the RRR one. We hear about those types of accidental shootings much more often.

IMO, the reason they didn't give that version of events is because there's some circumstance or physical evidence that John Q. Public doesn't know about that would not support that story.

These guys thought gun play was the only type of story that would satisfactorily account for an "accidental" shooting story. And they needed it to be accidental to avoid more serious charges.

JMO.

 

[Seattle1]

Feb 8, 2019

ST. LOUIS • After publicly feuding over officer-involved shooting investigations and an “exclusion list” of police officers not allowed to present cases to prosecutors, Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner announced on Friday new procedures for both as well as “progress” in collaboration and cooperation.

“Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards, Police Chief John Hayden and I are committed to improving procedures on how our offices operate together,” Gardner said in a statement. “As a result, we have made significant progress in strengthening our ability to collaborate and cooperate,” it continues, in part.

Gardner’s office blacklisted 28 officers in 2018, including them on a list that bans them from bringing cases to her office for charges. The St. Louis Police Officers Association complained that officers were not told why their names were included, and said their inclusion on the list damaged their reputations and their ability to do their jobs. The union also asserted that some officers were on the list because they had asserted their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in cases where Gardner’s office was simultaneously reviewing an officer’s conduct in a police shooting and pursuing charges against the person shot.


Gardner’s statement says that when her office has concerns about officers, they will report those officers to police Internal Affairs investigators. Edwards will review the investigation’s conclusions and share those findings with Gardner so she can decide whether to remove the officer’s name from the list, the statement says.

The statement also says that investigations of officer-involved shootings by both Gardner’s office and the police Force Investigation Unit will have priority, presumably over internal affairs investigations of those shootings.
St. Louis prosecutor announces changes in investigations of police shootings and 'exclusion list' officers

ETA: You can't make this stuff up-- coming from the top! And now I understand why not the RRR story...

 

[Seattle1]

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