Bradley Boyd, a deputy police chief with Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools and an elected member of the Olathe school board, is now the subject of two separate criminal investigations. The scrutiny follows an incident along Interstate 35 in Olathe earlier this month and a wave of complaints lodged by his own officers.
Boyd was pulled from his police cruiser along I-35 in Olathe on November 3 after what police characterized as a suicide attempt, according to KMBC. The interstate was shut down in both directions for more than an hour during the incident, the station reported. An Olathe police incident report lists a possible crime of possessing a firearm while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, per the same account, and a conviction on that charge is punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine under Kansas law, which defines the offense as knowingly possessing or carrying a loaded firearm while too impaired to safely operate it.
James Spies told the station that Boyd could potentially face additional charges, and said the situation raises questions about whether the district thoroughly vetted and scrutinized him before his promotion. As of November 10, the Olathe Police Department had not referred Boyd’s firearm-under-the-influence case to the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office or Olathe Municipal Court, the station’s report notes.
A Promotion Followed Within Days by Officer Complaints
Boyd was promoted from sergeant to deputy police chief on October 27, with the school board approving the move the night before district police chief Gary Washington announced the board’s approval in an email to officers the following day. Just weeks earlier, on October 4, anonymous police officers had emailed schools chief operations officer Miguel Martin with complaints about Boyd, the station’s report states…