LAPD Captain Comes under Personal Fire from Mother of Mitrice Richardson

BY ANNE SOBLE

In a classic example of the law of unintended consequences, the press conference called to disseminate information about a possible sighting of Mitrice Richardson has led to a brouhaha in the La Verne Girls Softball Association.

Capt. Kevin McClure of the LAPD, who heads the agency’s role in the missing person investigation and also is the president of the LVGSA, had apparently interacted with Richardson’s mother’s family—her half-sister was on a team—for the entire season without telling them who he is.

The youngster, whose name was formally requested not to be used, has been sheltered from the controversy about Richardson, other than the mother has said how much the girl misses her sister.

When McClure appeared on television at the Las Vegas briefing, Sutton said some parents—including board members—involved with LVGSA became “angry.”

She said they contacted her and indicated that they knew he was in police work, but they “had no idea that he was directly over [the Richardson] case,” while being the same person who “tried get her 11-year-old daughter removed” from the team level at which his own daughter plays.

Sutton emailed McClure, “You were the one trying to thwart an innocent child from playing softball because of the perceived contempt (apparently displayed at various meetings) for my eldest daughter and me.” 

She added, “If not for responsible [LVGSA] parents threatening to sue you and the league, you would have got away with eliminating my youngest baby [and] breaking her heart. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. You ought to remove yourself from Mitrice’s case. You ought to remove yourself from the LVGSA board.”

The dust has not settled yet, but it is reported that McClure has sent a letter of resignation to LVGSA.

When emailed by The News this week, McClure had no comment other than “if you would like to supply a phone number, I will forward it to the LVGSA board and they will contact you.”