A woman charged with first degree murder in connection to the death of a Fairway police officer last summer will stand trial, a Johnson County judge determined this week.
In a hearing Monday, Judge Michael Joyce of District 15 of Johnson County District Court found probable cause on all felony counts against Andrea Rene Cothran, 33, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee, and scheduled her arraignment for next month.
Cothran faces eight charges — seven of them felonies — in connection to the August 2023 car chase that led to an exchange of gunfire that left Fairway police Ofc. Jonah Oswald and another suspect dead.
The incident occurred last August
The incident, which took place on Aug. 6, started with a report of a stolen 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee near 95th Street and Interstate 35 in Lenexa.
Two suspects, identified as Cothran and Shannon Wayne Marshall, 40, of Ashland City, Tennessee, fled from Lenexa police officers, who arrived on the scene following the report.
According to Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe’s account of the incident, made public in December, Cothran was driving the stolen Cherokee when it rammed a Lenexa police vehicle before getting on I-35
A low-speed pursuit ensued northbound on I-35, ending at the QuikTrip at 4700 Lamar Ave., in Mission.
Officers from several nearby agencies, including Oswald, responded to the call once Marshall and Cothran were inside the QuikTrip.
Howe’s report said Cothran was eventually arrested inside the women’s bathroom at the QuikTrip, but Marshall remained barricaded inside the men’s restroom.
Officers warned Marshall he would be “tased” if he did not surrender. He refused and blocked efforts to kick the stall door open.
At some point, Oswald pushed against the partially open stall door and was shot in the head by Marshall, who had stuck his gun hand out, Howe said said.
Marshall was ultimately shot and killed by a Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper.
Oswald, 29, died at the hospital the following day from injuries sustained during the gunfire exchange.
Cothran faces eight different charges
- In addition to one count of murder of the first degree, Cothran is facing seven other charges, according to Johnson County court records.
- Cothran is charged with one count of aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer, three separate counts of felony theft and one count of firearm possession by felon.
- Judge Michael P. Joyce of District 15 at Johnson County District Court found probable cause on all felony counts, according to court documents.
- This finding by Joyce led to the scheduled arraignment.
A full complaint, detailing all charges Cothran is facing, can be found below.
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- Cothran’s arraignment is scheduled for 8:45 a.m. on April 25 in Division 15 of the Johnson County District Court.
- During an arraignment hearing, the defendant, in this case Cothran, will be advised of her penalties and her right to trial.
- The court will then take Cothran’s plea and set a date for the trial to begin.
- According to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office’s online database, Cothran remains in custody at the Johnson County Adult Detention Center at New Century on $1 million bond.
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