Metro Voice News Celebrating Faith, Family & Community
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department announced the funeral and memorial arrangements for fallen Officer Tamarris Bohannon. Visitation will be held Saturday, September 5 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Cathedral Basilica and a memorial service will be held Sunday, September 6 at 2 p.m. also at the Cathedral Basilica in St. Louis. Before the memorial service, there will be a procession from the Serenity Memorial Funeral Home at 1905 Union Boulevard to the Basilica.
Authorities could expect up to 10,000 people to line the streets in honor of the slain officer.
Bohannon, 29, of St. Louis has was shot and killed last weekend while responding to a 911 call for a reported shooting victim in the Tower Grove South neighborhood when a gunman shot him in the head.
This undated photo provided by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department shows Thomas Kinworthy Jr.
Thomas Kinworthy was charged Tuesday with eight counts, including first-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action, and assault. Kinworthy had barricaded himself inside a family residence, shooting a second officer in the leg who was trying to assist Bohannon. Kinworthy then ordered the people inside the residence to leave and held off police for 12-hours before surrendering to officers early Sunday morning.
Bohannon was affectionately known by his District Two squad as “Bo.” He leaves behind a wife, and three children, all under the age of 10, according to KSDK-TV.
“I am heartbroken over the line-of-duty death of Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department,” Mayor Lyda Krewson said in a statement. “I’ve had the privilege of spending some time with his family under these extraordinarily challenging circumstances,.
“They’re wonderful people and immensely proud of the way he selflessly served and protected our community with distinction and honor for more than three years. This is a horrific reminder of the dangers our brave men and women willingly face every day to keep us safe. I ask that everyone please continue to keep Officer Bohannon, his loved ones, friends and colleagues, and the entire St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department in your thoughts and prayers. This is a terrible, senseless tragedy.”
Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon dedicated over three and a half years of service to the citizens of the City of St. Louis.
We will be deeply missed. https://t.co/pyE6QdQ3Uk pic.twitter.com/qXFn0AiqYg
— St. Louis, MO Police (@SLMPD) August 31, 2020
Gov. Mike Parson also tweeted his condolences.
“Teresa and I are deeply saddened to hear of the loss of one of our @SLMPD Officers,” he wrote. “An arrest has been made. Officers across Missouri protect us every day without hesitation and they and their families deserve our support. #BacktheBlue.”
https://www.facebook.com/GovMikeParson/posts/821828898558226
St. Louis has seen its share of Black Lives Matter protests, and some critics are arguing that black police lives should matter to the movement, too. Journalist Miranda Devine tweeted condemnation, arguing that black police lives don’t matter to BLM-Antifa activists due to their repeated chants to “, “abolish police”, and “defund the police. Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon was a father of three. His black life didn’t matter to BLM-Antifa…”
Court records show that Kinworthy was convicted in a 1998 road rage incident in Brevard County, Florida. After ramming a Ford Mustang, he shot the Mustang driver, causing him to lose three fingers. Kinworthy was convicted in 2001 and served six years in prison.
Brevard County court records show that Kinworthy was facing charges again in Brevard County, this time for sexual battery, false imprisonment and other counts. He was accused of attempting to choke and rape a man in the man’s home August 2019.
Kinworthy was arrested after the investigation was completed in January, when he also was charged with being a felon in possession of firearms after several guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition were allegedly found in his car. He was released on bail.
Social media sleuths have confirmed evidence that Kinworthy had been connected to Antifa and had recently participated in Black Lives Matter protests.
Kinworthy was due in court in Brevard County last month but failed to show up and a warrant was issued for his arrest, according to court records and a spokesman for the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities are investigating exactly when Kinworthy arrived in St. Louis.
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice
