Missouri cop won’t serve jail time after killing 4-year-old girl on sidewalk with patrol car

(The AEGIS Alliance) – A Columbia, Missouri cop will not do any time behind bars after she struck a 4-year-old girl on the sidewalk and killer her with a police patrol car.

Andria Heese, a cop employed by the Columbia Police Department, was ordered by a judge to serve 2 years of supervised probation on Thursday in a Boone County Courthouse courtroom.

A sentencing memo on June 30  stated that Heese’s odds of committing an additional criminal offense down the road is unlikely. The memo didn’t advise jail time for Heese.

In January of 2019, Heese fatally hit aged 4, Gabriella Curry, with a police vehicle nearby the Battle High School, situated at 7575 E. St. Charles Road in Columbia.

In a news release in 2019 coming from the Columbia Police Department, Heese had been driving a “market patrol vehicle,” when she struck Curry as she drove onto the sidewalk while students were being let out of school.

“The officer, another CPD officer at the school, and other school personnel began providing immediate medical care to the child. The officer requested further medical aid via radio. Columbia Fire and University Ambulance EMS arrived and provided advanced life support. The child was transported to the University Hospital Level One Trauma with CPD escort,” the Columbia Police Department pointed out in 2019.

“Despite life-saving attempts by emergency personnel both on the scene and at the hospital, the child passed away due to injuries sustained during the incident,” the department added.

“I would ask everyone to please pray for the family and pray for the officer that was involved in this incident,” Columbia Acting Police Chief Jill Schlude stated back then.

Heese was originally facing charges of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Curry in which she pleaded not guilty. However, in June 2021, Kevin Hillman, the special prosecutor working on the case, lowered the charges to negligent and careless driving. Heese made a guilty plea to the lowered charges.

While Heese testified at her sentencing on Thursday, she said “I would like to say I’m very sorry.”

“My heart is broken for Gabby and for her parents. I wish this never happened and if there’s anything I can do to go back and do it over I would,” she added. “I am devastated by this and I know that you all are devastated too.”

Back in May of 2020, the Columbia Police Department agreed to a $3.4 million settlement deal with Curry’s family members in a wrongful death suit.

The Columbia Police Department mentioned in 2019 that Heese had been put on administrative leave following the incident. Heese is still working for the Columbia Police Department, however, it’s not clear if she’s continued to be on administrative leave.

Kyle James Lee – The AEGIS Alliance – This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.