A Missouri police officer working off-duty security in the Kansas City suburb of Westport now faces both criminal charges and a civil lawsuit after a bystander captured video of him kneeing a restrained man in the neck during an arrest in July 2024.
Kansas City Officer Christopher Showalter was indicted last week by a Jackson County grand jury on a misdemeanor fourth-degree assault charge.
According to court documents, Showalter allegedly caused “physical pain” to the victim, William Michael Hardy, by “slamming his face/chin against the concrete sidewalk and kneeing him in the face/chin while the victim was handcuffed and lying on his stomach.”
If convicted, he could face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Showalter is scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday, July 15.
The incident occurred near the intersection of West 40th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue on July 6, 2024. Hardy was riding his bicycle into Westport’s entertainment district when officers stopped him. Showalter’s report claims police had ordered Hardy to stop as he approached a screening area. However, a civil lawsuit filed by Hardy last month disputes that account, stating that no barricades were blocking the street at the time.
Bystander video of the assault, reposted by the Kansas City Star on Instagram, appears to show Hardy already restrained when Showalter delivered the knee strike. In the footage, a bystander reacts in disbelief, exclaiming, “What? What the [expletive] was that for?”
“I think collectively we were all just pretty stunned,” one witness told the Kansas City Star.
The aftermath of the arrest sent Hardy to the hospital with a laceration to his chin. His lawsuit, filed in Jackson County Circuit Court, alleges assault, battery, and false imprisonment. It also names Chesley Brown International, the private security firm that employed Showalter, as a co-defendant, claiming the company is liable for the officer’s actions and failed to properly supervise him.
Hardy’s legal team contends Showalter forcibly removed him from his bicycle without cause, escalating the encounter unnecessarily. While the Kansas City Police Department is not named in the lawsuit, KCPD spokeswoman Officer Alayna Gonzalez told The Kansas City Star the department does not generally comment on pending litigation “to ensure fairness to all sides.” Questions regarding the indictment were referred to the Jackson County prosecutor’s office.
