Member of Kansas City First Nazarene Church is victim of stabbing by homeless man before Sunday service

Jarod Hill is charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action after stabbing a member of Kansas City First Church of the Nazarene last Sunday morning. The homeless man had been camping in a tent on church property at 119^th Street and State Line Road. The church’s Emergency Response Team responded quickly.

“We try to be open, but we do try to be cautious,” administrative Pastor Dale Jones told KCTV-5. “That’s why we have these teams.”

Hill told the team that Masons had spray painted his tent with chemicals and were out to get him, according to court documents. He wanted them to check their security camera footage to find the culprit. They agreed to check the footage and invited him inside to have a meal while they did so. Hill became upset when they returned to say they could find no footage of anyone spray painting his tent.

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According to multiple witness statements, Hill left the building slowly and then lingered outside the entrance. One witness described Hill as uncooperative. That same witness said that the situation seemed to have de-escalated. While standing out front, Hill said he needed directions to a laundromat and asked for a taxi, according to another witness. The victim was on his phone looking for the nearest laundromat, the witness said, when Hill put the victim in a headlock with his left arm, then reached into his pocket with his right hand to grab a knife and began stabbing the victim in the chest.

Numerous members of the church’s emergency response team, including one who identified himself as a retired police officer, jumped in to stop Hill and take the knife from him. A nurse in the congregation tended to the victim. Jones said the victim is recovering well. He said the church will debrief on what happened and consider charges, but it almost certainly will continue to show compassion and offer help when someone seems to be struggling.

“We’ll probably lock the doors more often than we kept them locked before,” he said. “We’ll have people watching more carefully. We’ll make certain that we have a team together whenever we’re meeting with someone. But I can’t imagine us just saying, ‘Go away.’ That’s not our style.”

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice