Federal prosecutors allege racially motivated house torching in Independence
A grand jury indictment issued at federal court in Kansas City details allegations of a nasty crime in Independence where a black family had its house set on fire by racist neighbors.
It’s a story from June 26, 2008, that, if true, summons memories of a much earlier and far less progressive time in this country’s civil rights attitude.
Victoria Cheek-Herrera, 33, is accused of drawing a swastika, coupled with the words “white power,” on the driveway of the house that Larry Davis and Stacey Little rented in Independence with their children.
Cheek-Herrera and an unnamed conspirator then got their hands on some gasoline from a juvenile and used it to make a Molotov cocktail. The indictment says they then tossed the bomb against the side of the residence, setting it on fire.
