A man who shot and killed two Missouri sheriff’s deputies previously had a conviction for shooting at a Johnson County Sheriff’s deputy more than a decade ago.
On Tuesday, Richard Dean Bird, 45, was shot and killed in southwestern Missouri after a manhunt with local, state and federal agencies.
The manhunt started after Bird shot and killed Christian County Deputy Gabriel Ramirez during a traffic stop on Monday afternoon, authorities said.
Some 100 federal, state and local law enforcement agents were involved in the subsequent search for Bird, which culminated with Bird’s pickup truck being discovered about 15 miles away from the scene of the traffic stop shooting.
Bird was killed in a shootout with law enforcement. In the course of that, Bird shot and killed another Christian County Deputy, Michael Hislope, and wounded two other deputies, according to the Associated Press.
Before the shootings on Monday, Bird had been out on bond Friday, Feb. 20, after being charged with receiving stolen property and possession of a controlled substance, the AP reported.
Bird shot at a deputy in Johnson County in 2014
Bird had a lengthy list of convictions in both Missouri and Kansas, including being sentenced to 96 months in prison in 2014 for firing at a Johnson County Sheriff’s deputy.
On Sept. 21, 2014, a Johnson County Sheriff’s deputy, who was not named, was called to a report of a theft in progress at the area of 191st Street and State Line Road.
When he arrived, Bird fired multiple shots from a rifle at him, but did not hit him, according to a Kansas City Star report at the time.
Bird was charged on Sept. 24, 2014, in Johnson County District Court.
In April 2016, he was sentenced to 96 months in prison for five charges, including assault on a law enforcement officer, misdemeanor theft, felony possession, discharging a firearm, obstructing legal process and fleeing law enforcement, according to Kansas court records.
The sentence was handed down by Judge Neil B. Foth.
Bird was released from a Missouri State prison in 2021 and his sentence ended in 2023, according to Kansas Department of Corrections records.
Bird continued to break the law
Following Bird’s release from prison in 2023, he continued to rack up convictions in Missouri, including driving with a revoked license, misdemeanor stealing and tampering with a motor vehicle, according to Missouri court records.
On Feb. 18 in Stone County Circuit Court in Galena, Missouri, Bird was charged with receiving stolen property and possession of a controlled substance after Stone County deputies discovered a stolen four-wheel off-road vehicle at a trailer where Bird was living.
They also found drugs and other stolen property, including a manhole cover, according to Missouri court records.
Bird was released on bond on Friday, Feb. 20.
On Monday, he received a new round of charges, including burglary, stealing and tampering with physical evidence, after coins found during a search of his property were traced back to an earlier theft of an antique safe, according to court records.
It’s unclear if Ramirez, the Christian County deputy, knew of the charges that Bird was facing when he pulled him over on Monday, Christian County Sheriff Brad Cole said in a press conference.
“If he had known about that, it could have played a role in the factors of what happened, but I don’t want to speculate on that,” he said.
Funerals will be held for the deputies
Funeral services for both Deputies Ramirez and Hislope will take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. at James River Church in Ozark, Missouri.
The service will honor the lives, service, and sacrifice of both deputies, according to the Christian County Sheriff’s Office.
