Family of McKinley Johnson, man killed in shooting, speaks about violence

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – A three-person shooting occurred near Truman Road and Grand Boulevard in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, early Monday morning.

28-year-old McKinley Johnson was killed in the shooting.

His sister, Breanna Johnson, told KSHB 41 News that the loss of her brother is painful.

“It probably won’t be set in stone until I honestly see my brother lying in that coffin,” Johnson said.

Breanna Johnson tries to cope with the loss of her little brother.

“Ever since I got the call at 12:51 on Monday that Mack had been shot, it’s just been tough,” she said. “I’ve taken it second by second, day by day.”

Mckinley Johnson, known as Mack to his family and close friends, was shot and killed while enjoying an evening of fun.

“That’s why I don’t go out anymore; I’ve already done that,” said Breanna Johnson. “Nowadays, because of the current situation, it’s not really safe to go out anymore.”

The shooting occurred not far from the Prime Bar and Grill nightclub, but McKinley Johnson’s family does not blame the bar, but rather the person who pulled the trigger.

“It’s not the bar’s problem, it’s the people. You can’t control people’s drinking because everyone has a different alcohol level,” Breanna Johnson said. “So you can’t really control all of that, so I don’t want to blame Prime because it’s not Prime. Someone killed my brother, not the business, so I don’t want their business to be hurt in the process because they had nothing to do with it.”

KSHB 41 contacted the owner of Prime Bar and Grill.

He did not want to appear on camera, but said he was present the night of the shooting.

The owner is not aware of what led to the shooting and said safety measures were in place.

“We have security personnel checking for weapons and contraband. Nothing happened at our establishment; (it was) a quiet night. I was alerted that something happened about three buildings away from ours,” the owner said in a statement. “We are a small disabled veterans business that is entirely Hispanic and female owned. My business partner is a Hispanic woman. We are loyal citizens who contribute to our city’s economy and directly and indirectly economically support our city through employment, purchasing supplies and service contracts. We have all types of customers – Hispanics, Blacks, country folks – you name it. We do not issue weapons at our establishment to disrupt the city. We do not own the cars nor do we have any connection to those who sell doughnuts in our city.”

Breanna Johnson says she will now cherish memories of her brother as a star football player, family man and more.

“His smile lit up the room. Everything about my brother is just incredible. Anyone who met Mack knew Mack was a true joy,” Johnson said. “Not being able to see my brother is really hard. I’m not used to walking into an empty room and now knowing he’s never coming back.”

—