Former Missouri police detective gets six years for shooting man in his driveway

A former Missouri police detective who fatally shot a Black man as he backed a truck into the driveway of his own home has been sentenced to six years behind bars.

Eric DeValkenaere, who is white, was handed a three-year sentence on Friday for involuntary second-degree manslaughter in the death of Cameron Lamb as well as a six-year prison stay for armed criminal action, CNN reported. He was found guilty in a bench trial last November and the sentences will run concurrently.

The deadly shooting unfolded on December 3, 2019, when DeValkenaere and his partner responded to a traffic incident involving a stolen vehicle. Prosecutors said Lamb was chasing his girlfriend’s convertible in the missing pickup, which authorities tracked to a home in Kansas City.

Lamb was slowly backing the truck down a ramp into the basement garage, when he was confronted by officers in his driveway. They tried to tell Lamb to stop, but it’s unclear whether he heard their commands, according to the indictment.

DeValkenaere then fired off four rounds at Lamb and went on to claim he spotted Lamb’s hand reaching for a firearm and then point it at his partner.

Prosecutors argued that the officers, who did not have a warrant, never should’ve confronted the suspect on the property of his own residence. They also pushed back on DeValkenaere’s account, arguing that Lamb’s left hand was on the truck’s steering wheel while his cell phone was in his right hand before the gunfire erupted.

An officer at the scene of the shooting also testified that while he did not see a weapon near Lamb’s body, one later appeared beside him in evidence photos.

DeValkenaere will remain free on bond while his conviction is appealed.