03/02/2022
The Whole Dotte, Nothing but the Dotte! Get them All!
What happens to local law enforcement leaders who refuse to cover up their colleagues’ crimes? Even when they succeed, they are often punished by their peers' misconduct. Such is the story of retired KCKPD Detective Max Seifert and former WyCo Prosecutor Terra Morehead.
SPOILER ALERT: As so often happens when whistleblowers report misconduct, Seifert (the whistleblower) received a taxpayer-funded settlement years after losing his job, but no leader was actually held accountable. Meanwhile, Morehead (who bullied Seifert and others) continued to collect six figures in her taxpayer-funded position as Assistant U.S. Attorney - a job she holds to this day.
Below is a chronological account of the Seifert/Morehead story.
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1974: Max Seifert begins working for the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department.
1986: Terra Morehead begins working as a Wyandotte County Prosecutor.
1990-1991: Terra Morehead dates Wyandotte County Judge Dexter Burdette while working as a WyCo Prosecutor; they go on to work cases together without disclosing their prior relationship.
1998: In United States v. Elam, a judge “suppressed evidence obtained under a search warrant for drug evidence because Seifert had seized a large number of allegedly stolen items not covered by the warrant” and so concludes Max Seifert’s testimony “lacks credibility” in that case.
1999: Seifert investigates the disappearance of Star Boomer, a Golubski-related cold case Justice for Wyandotte reported on last year. Seifert also catches two drug dealers, two days in a row, running drugs into a retired KCKPD officer’s house. He reports it to his boss. His boss discourages him from seeking a search warrant. Seifert obtains a search warrant from a judge and prosecutor but is told not to execute it. Seifert recalls: "He called down there and warned him like he was on his side, and I was the enemy ... like I was the criminal and he was the good guy. But this ... this was totally wrong. This is signed by a district court judge.”
2002: Terra Morehead ceases prosecuting Wyandotte County cases under her former lover Judge Burdette, becomes Assistant U.S. Attorney, and learns of Seifert’s 1998 case.
2003: KCKPD assigns Max Seifert to investigate an incident involving civilian Barron Bowling and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Agent Timothy McCue. Seifert records interviews with 3 eyewitnesses and concludes McCue called Bowling “white trash” and an “inbred hillbilly” and used excessive force against Bowling without probable cause. Despite pressure from KCKPD Officers Bobby Lane, Dennis Ware, Steven Culp and others to keep quiet and protect their DEA relationship, Seifert reports misconduct and turns over the evidence he collected. Shortly thereafter, his tape of witness interviews goes missing and “has never been recovered”.
2005:
KCKPD Officer Bobby Lane is convicted of fixing DUI tickets while serving on the Edwardsville City Council.
Bowling’s case goes to court, where a prosecutor charges Bowling with a felony and Seifert is subpoenaed as a defense witness. After Seifert’s testimony, the jury acquits Bowling of all charges except a misdemeanor.
After the trial, the prosecutor complains to deputy police chief Colonel Steve Culp about Seifert’s contact with defense counsel. Culp asks Internal Affairs (where Terry Zeigler is captain) to investigate Seifert’s contact with Bowling’s defense counsel.
On December 21, KCKPD forces Seifert into early retirement after 31 years of service, 1 year before he qualifies for a police pension.
On December 22, Police Chief Ron Miller issues his finding against Seifert in the Internal Affairs investigation, stating Seifert violated KCKPD policy by communicating with a defense lawyer without permission; since Seifert retired the day before, he is unable to protest the finding.
2006: Seifert obtains a reserve commission from the Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Department and is required to volunteer 16 hours a month with criminal investigations, which he does until 2009.
2009: Bowling sues WyCo and settles. Terra Morehead tells Seifert’s superiors that Seifert “lacks credibility,” citing the 1998 case as evidence. The Wyandotte County Sheriff’s office removes Seifert from investigations. While training police officers, Morehead warns them of the pitfalls of having credibility issues and cites Seifert as an example. Seifert hires a lawyer, who tells Morehead to stop.
2010: Seifert loses his reserve commission with the Sheriff’s office. In Bowling v. U.S., Judge Julie Robinson awards Bowling $833,250 and concludes the following about Seifert:
“Seifert conducted a thorough investigation and, presciently, his career was not only put in jeopardy, he lost his career over this case. Seifert was chastised by his managers and ultimately forced out of the police department before he was vested in all retirement benefits. Seifert was shunned, subjected to gossip and defamation by his police colleagues, and treated as a pariah… The Court is compelled to note that the way Seifert was treated was shameful. Seifert was balkanized for crossing the ‘thin blue line.’ In all respects the Court found Seifert a credible witness, in fact, of all the witnesses who testified, Seifert was the most credible. He did not ask to be assigned to this case, and in keeping with his characteristic diligence and dedication, which had been noted in past evaluations and even written about in a paper authored by his supervisor, Seifert attempted to fully and objectively investigate this case. Seifert soon determined that there was not even probable cause to charge plaintiff with criminal damage to property. He was castigated by his superiors, by the prosecutor, by the DEA, and upon his forced retirement, he was denied a commission that would allow him to obtain work as a security guard, something police retirees typically rely upon to supplement their limited retirement income. Construing language in an opinion authored by another judge in this Court, law enforcement — even in this trial — attempted to paint a false picture of Seifert and impugn his credibility, even while a string of law enforcement witnesses in this case either testified falsely or through omission, in a way that did not represent the entirety of what the three federal agents did on the day in question.”
2011: Max Seifert sues the Unified Government (UG) of Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office for retaliation.
2012: A federal judge dismisses Seifert’s claims.
2013: U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten grants the UG’s Motion for a Summary Judgment, ruling against Seifert.
2015: The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals overturns the dismissal of Seifert’s retaliation lawsuit against the UG. The appeals court found that Wyandotte County’s 2009 summoning of a 1998 incident, in contrast to the fact that Seifert had testified in Bowling’s favor just six days prior to getting pulled off investigations, was dubious enough to warrant reinstating his case.
2017: Media reports Seifert settled with the UG.
2019: When a tip reopens the 1999 cold case of Star Boomer, Max Seifert says he hopes KCKPD will “follow every lead because, you know, no matter how mundane or insignificant it may seem, you know it may be the one that opens the case for you and opens the doors for you to solve the case… I feel that those who are responsible for her disappearance and her ultimate death should be held accountable, and the investigation should continue on. They should be brought up on charges.”
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Like former KCKPD Detective Max Seifert, we believe all people have a human right to fair justice under the law. Join us in calling on our District Attorney and U.S. Department of Justice to fully review all cases Morehead prosecuted in WyCo; sign & share the petition today 📝: https://www.change.org/p/department-of-justice-doj-review-of-corrupt-kck-prosecutor-s-cases
To learn more, tune into Season Two of The 7th Street Podcast; watch for more case studies here; or visit JusticeForWyandotte.org to donate toward our victim advocacy and read about 35 criminal cases (including Lamonte McIntyre’s) where Morehead engaged in ethically questionable conduct.
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SOURCES:
2009 court file (Bowling):https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-ksd-2_04-cv-02320/pdf/USCOURTS-ksd-2_04-cv-02320-1.pdf
2010 court file (Bowling): https://casetext.com/case/bowling-v-us
2012 court file (Seifert): dismissalhttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-ksd-2_11-cv-02327/pdf/USCOURTS-ksd-2_11-cv-02327-0.pdf
2013 court file (Seifert): summary judgment https://ecf.ksd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2011cv2327-202
2015 court file (Seifert): settlement https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-10th-circuit/1693491.html
2010 media coverage: https://www.kansas.com/news/local/article1047794.html
2013 media coverage: https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article321032.html
March 2015 media coverage: https://www.thepitchkc.com/appeals-court-reinstates-an-exkck-detectives-lawsuit-claiming-retaliation-for-exposing-a-beating/
April 2015 media coverage: https://www.thepitchkc.com/a-revived-court-case-casts-new-light-on-a-dark-period-in-wyandotte-county-law-enforcement
2017 media coverage: https://www.kctv5.com/news/blue-line-broken-former-kansas-city-ks-detective-turns-whistleblower/article_d772d703-053c-53b0-a792-e41a63d7c8d9.html
2019 media coverage: https://www.kctv5.com/news/investigations/kck-police-continue-to-dig-for-answers-in-20-year-old-cold-case/article_78c85924-1621-11ea-bcaa-1f563292a03d.html
2021 media coverage: https://www.kansascity.com/opinion/editorials/article249952509.html
