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Makayla R. Smith, of Raytown, is charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of 34-year-old Jenna L. Nava, her wife. Court records show the couple were in the midst of a divorce and there was a standing order of protection that Smith had requested against Nava on the day she was killed.
According to a probable cause statement filed Wednesday in Jackson County Circuit Court, Kansas City police were dispatched around 10 p.m. to the Hudson Pointe Apartments in the 8800 block of Crystal Lane for a medical call. Officers found Nava face down on the ground of her third-floor apartment.
Kansas City Fire Department paramedics declared the victim dead at the scene, according to court records. The Jackson County Medical Examiner’s office ruled the death a homicide and found that Nava had been shot once while a firearm was pressed against her body.
Investigators found a large kitchen knife next to her right hand and a live 9mm round nearby.
Detectives interviewed a 14-year-old daughter of the victim. She allegedly told them she went to wake her mother when someone started to jiggle the doorknob that night. As her mother was getting dressed, the girl grabbed a knife from the kitchen.
When her mother asked “who is it” through the door, a reply came from a voice recognized as Smith’s: “Me.” The teenager then handed the knife to her mother, according to court records.
Nava opened the door and two women, including one identified by police as Smith, allegedly walked inside. An argument began and Nava instructed her daughter to call police, the teen told detectives, as Smith allegedly removed a handgun from her hooded sweatshirt and placed it against Nava’s neck.
The teenager said she hid in the back bedroom with her two sisters and heard a single gunshot as she dialed 911. Another 10-year-old, interviewed by Child Protective Services, told investigators she saw a firearm in Smith’s hand before the shooting.
No suspects remained on the scene when police arrived.
Later, a witness came forward to police and said Smith had confessed to shooting Nava, but had contended that the event was accidental. The witness said he was aware of a strained relationship between the couple and that he had advised Smith to surrender to police.
Operating on anonymous tips, police began a surveillance operation on a home in Raytown where Smith was believed to be residing. Police arrested her and another suspect who was allegedly with her at the apartment the night of the shooting.
During an interview with police, the other woman, whose name is not disclosed in court records, allegedly admitted to accompanying Smith to the apartment. She told detectives that there was a “tussling” over a knife held by Nava that led to Smith accidentally shooting Nava.
Smith was also arrested and released as detectives sought additional evidence from cellphone records outlining the relationship between her and her wife, according to court records. No record of an interview with Smith is noted in the probable cause statement.
Text messages associated with Smith’s phone reviewed by detectives allegedly discussed shooting someone that investigators viewed as a reference to Nava.
In the charging documents, a detective noted that there were several documented reports alleging domestic violence between the victim and her wife.
Court records did not list an attorney for Smith.
Woman accused of fatally shooting wife in Kansas City apartment as three children hid
A 30-year-old woman is accused of fatally shooting her wife during a domestic dispute earlier this year in a Kansas City apartment as three of the victim’s children hid in a bedroom and called 911, according to court records.Makayla R. Smith, of Raytown, is charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the killing of 34-year-old Jenna L. Nava, her wife. Court records show the couple were in the midst of a divorce and there was a standing order of protection that Smith had requested against Nava on the day she was killed.
According to a probable cause statement filed Wednesday in Jackson County Circuit Court, Kansas City police were dispatched around 10 p.m. to the Hudson Pointe Apartments in the 8800 block of Crystal Lane for a medical call. Officers found Nava face down on the ground of her third-floor apartment.
Kansas City Fire Department paramedics declared the victim dead at the scene, according to court records. The Jackson County Medical Examiner’s office ruled the death a homicide and found that Nava had been shot once while a firearm was pressed against her body.
Investigators found a large kitchen knife next to her right hand and a live 9mm round nearby.
Detectives interviewed a 14-year-old daughter of the victim. She allegedly told them she went to wake her mother when someone started to jiggle the doorknob that night. As her mother was getting dressed, the girl grabbed a knife from the kitchen.
When her mother asked “who is it” through the door, a reply came from a voice recognized as Smith’s: “Me.” The teenager then handed the knife to her mother, according to court records.
Nava opened the door and two women, including one identified by police as Smith, allegedly walked inside. An argument began and Nava instructed her daughter to call police, the teen told detectives, as Smith allegedly removed a handgun from her hooded sweatshirt and placed it against Nava’s neck.
The teenager said she hid in the back bedroom with her two sisters and heard a single gunshot as she dialed 911. Another 10-year-old, interviewed by Child Protective Services, told investigators she saw a firearm in Smith’s hand before the shooting.
No suspects remained on the scene when police arrived.
Later, a witness came forward to police and said Smith had confessed to shooting Nava, but had contended that the event was accidental. The witness said he was aware of a strained relationship between the couple and that he had advised Smith to surrender to police.
Operating on anonymous tips, police began a surveillance operation on a home in Raytown where Smith was believed to be residing. Police arrested her and another suspect who was allegedly with her at the apartment the night of the shooting.
During an interview with police, the other woman, whose name is not disclosed in court records, allegedly admitted to accompanying Smith to the apartment. She told detectives that there was a “tussling” over a knife held by Nava that led to Smith accidentally shooting Nava.
Smith was also arrested and released as detectives sought additional evidence from cellphone records outlining the relationship between her and her wife, according to court records. No record of an interview with Smith is noted in the probable cause statement.
Text messages associated with Smith’s phone reviewed by detectives allegedly discussed shooting someone that investigators viewed as a reference to Nava.
In the charging documents, a detective noted that there were several documented reports alleging domestic violence between the victim and her wife.
Court records did not list an attorney for Smith.
