Shook Lends Litigation Heft to End Wichita Gang List Lawsuit

After three years of litigation, the City of Wichita approved a settlement that will significantly reform the policy and practices of the Wichita Police Department's (WPD) long-standing use of an unconstitutional and discriminatory “Gang List” or “Gang Database.”

Working with the ACLU of Kansas and the Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, Shook filed a class action lawsuit alleging the Wichita Police Department’s use of a gang list was unconstitutional and violates community members’ First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment Rights. 

The mediated agreement narrows and clarifies the criteria the Wichita Police Department can use to place a person on the Gang List/Database, with increased third-party oversight on the Gang List/Database process to review when and how someone can be listed. 

Shook lawyers who worked pro bono on the ongoing litigation include Jordan Baer, Charlie Eblen, Mitch Engel, Lindsey Knapton, Tom Sullivan and Paul Vogel.

The case is Progeny v. City of Wichita, Kansas, United States District Court for the District of Kansas, Case No. 6:21-cv-01100. The class action complaint was filed on April 15, 2021. The settlement was approved nearly three years later on April 9, 2024.