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Brother of Kansas City radio DJ, 44, shot dead at Super Bowl parade reveals harrowing new details of her death and how son, 20, and grade school cousins were among 22 injured

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Brother of Kansas City radio DJ, 44, shot dead at Super Bowl parade reveals harrowing new details of her death and how son, 20, and grade school cousins were among 22 injured


The family of the female DJ killed during Wednesday’s mass shooting in Kansas City has claimed she died at the scene rather than a hospital as previously reported.

Two suspects are currently in custody, as cops in Missouri continue to vet what happened at the stricken Super Bowl celebration. 

Beto Lopez on Thursday claimed his 44-year-old sister Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a beloved figure in the local community, was mowed down by at least one of them.

A respected figure in the city’s Hispanic sect himself, Lopez went on to reveal Lopez-Galvan’s son, Marc, and her daughter, Adrianna, were both present at the parade, and witnessed their mom’s merciless killing.

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Only in his early 20s, Marc was also shot, Lopez said – claiming it was his nephew who was rushed to a hospital and not his sister, despite early reports. 

He added how two other relatives, two grade school girls, were also struck by bullets, as cops said nine kids were hospitalized. Their investigation remains ongoing, as another 13 adults were injured.

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Lisa Lopez-Galvan, seen her with her two kids, 19-year-old Adrianna and 20-something Marc, died at the scene of Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting, cops and family members have revealed. Her two kids were also present, with Marc shot in the leg, relatives said

Their young cousins - identified only as the elementary school aged daughters of fellow Kansas City resident Erika Reyes - were also present when the initial shots rang out, and were both hit by gunshots, though Lopez said their wounds are 'non-life threatening'

Their young cousins – identified only as the elementary school aged daughters of fellow Kansas City resident Erika Reyes – were also present when the initial shots rang out, and were both hit by gunshots, though Lopez said their wounds are ‘non-life threatening’

‘She never made it to the hospital,’ said Lopez of his younger sister’s fate – a statement further substantiated by cops Thursday who confirmed she died at the scene contrary to previous reports.

Aside from that, the CEO of a local youth center said the rest is still hazy – and that it was was unclear if Lopez Galvan’s husband, 66-year-old Mike Galvan, was with the party.  

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From what Lopez knows so far, Galvan said his sister was with Marc and Adriana.

Their young cousins – identified only as the elementary school aged daughters of relative Erika Reyes – were also there on the west side of Union Station when the initial shots rang out.

Sadly, all except Adriana were struck, Lopez said – with his little sister hit fatally.

‘They were enjoying the day and getting ready to go home. Everybody was,’ Lopez lamented, offering the crucial insight to the local Kansas City star.

‘They were all kind of together. They were caught in whatever crossfire was going on.’

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He went on to reveal the extent of the youngster’s injuries, stating that his 20-something nephew was hit once in the leg, and has since been released.

Adriana, while not hurt physically, is struggling mentally, he said – before airing concern for both as they ‘witnessed their mother get shot.’

'She never made it to the hospital,' said Lopez of his younger sister's fate - a statement further substantiated by cops Thursday who confirmed she died at the scene contrary to prior reports

‘She never made it to the hospital,’ said Lopez of his younger sister’s fate – a statement further substantiated by cops Thursday who confirmed she died at the scene contrary to prior reports 

'They were enjoying the day and getting ready to go home. Everybody was,' Lopez lamented of the moment disaster struck

‘They were enjoying the day and getting ready to go home. Everybody was,’ Lopez lamented of the moment disaster struck 

Lopez-Galvan, who worked as a DJ at a community radio station, leaves behind her two kids, Marc and Adriana

Lopez-Galvan, who worked as a DJ at a community radio station, leaves behind her two kids, Marc and Adriana

Lisa Lopez-Galvan, pictured here with her husband, Mike Galvan, died from her gunshot wounds at the scene of the crime

Lisa Lopez-Galvan, pictured here with her husband, Mike Galvan, died from her gunshot wounds at the scene of the crime

Although Marc has been released from the hospital, Lopez said the family is ‘just going to have to really help him mentally to get through this.’

He went on: ‘Besides the shock, the initial shock, [Marc] was there, with his mother, when all this happened.’

Lopez further revealed how his sister – a disc jockey of a Hispanic music program on community radio station KKFI – was the youngest of four siblings, including himself.

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‘Of the four of us siblings, she was the life of the party,’ he said. ‘Bubbly person, never met a stranger. She was highly loved in the community, had a big heart.’

He added that the mom-of-two had also been a die-hard Kansas City fan, and was over the moon when they won the big game.

No funeral plans have been made, he said – before revealing the current condition of the Marc and Adriana’s cousins who were hit by the hail of bullets.

‘[Their wounds are] non-life threatening,’ Lopez told The Star.

He added that the family has yet to see his sister’s body, due to the fact that it is part of an active homicide investigation.

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‘When you have a … It’s a murder,’ he said, before trailing off. ‘Even for me to say that, “My sister got killed,” [it]s] absurd even to say that.’

Images circulating on social media show a group of people being taken into custody following the shooting, some of whom appear to be juveniles. It is not clear if those pictured are suspects

Images circulating on social media show a group of people being taken into custody following the shooting, some of whom appear to be juveniles. It is not clear if those pictured are suspects 

A man in a red tracksuit was quickly taken into custody after the shooting, although it is unclear if he was involved in the tragedy

A man in a red tracksuit was quickly taken into custody after the shooting, although it is unclear if he was involved in the tragedy 

Terrified parade-goers fled for their lives after gunmen opened fire shortly after the Super Bowl winners stepped off stage

Terrified parade-goers fled for their lives after gunmen opened fire shortly after the Super Bowl winners stepped off stage 

He went to explain how ‘[w]hen there’s an investigation that’s still active, not until the investigation is over will they give us any details on how we can get her body back to do a respectful burial,’ before stating how they plan to honor her memory.

“We’re going to try to make sure she is not forgotten,’ he said, as cops have confirmed they have taken two juvenile suspects into custody.

‘If we have to use this as an example to finally get the right attention in Congress, to really address gun violence,’ he continued. ‘That is something that will be part of my mission for the rest of my life.

‘She was [just] trying to go, like everyone else, to celebrate.’

The important count came shortly after staff at Children’s Mercy hospital also confirmed they had treated nine children for gunshot wounds from the incident.

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All, including Reyes’s young daughters, are expected to recover, they said – with cops adding that of the 22 injured victims, some of whom were trampled in the fray, half were children under age 16. 

Police Chief Stacey Graves added that while her department still needs to sort through evidence, the victims ranged between eight and 47 years old. Lopez on Sunday did not specify the two girls’ age, aside from that they were in elementary school.

Officials at University Health added that of the adult gunshot wound victims rushed to their hospital, two remain in critical condition and in the ICU.

However, medical staff there said both are showing signs of improvement – while Graves revealed that of the three people detained after the incident Wednesday, two are still being detained.

Both are teenage juveniles, with a third youngster released at some point before her Thursday statement.

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She added that the 24-hour investigative hold rule does not apply to juveniles, meaning officials can keep them detained for a great deal longer before cutting them lose.

Their investigation, as Friday, remains ongoing. 



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Kansas law revoked their right to drive and threatens their right to exist, transgender residents say

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Kansas law revoked their right to drive and threatens their right to exist, transgender residents say


Some 1,700 Kansans had their driver’s licenses invalidated last month. It wasn’t for racking up speeding tickets or a DUI charge, but because they are transgender.

Kansas is one of five states to prohibit trans people from changing the gender marker on their licenses, but it is the first to pass a law that retroactively cancels licenses that were already changed. The law also invalidated birth certificates for those who updated their gender markers.

Hundreds of trans drivers already received letters from the state informing them their documents were “invalid immediately” and they “may be subject to additional penalties” if they continue to drive, unless they surrender the license to the Kansas Division of Vehicles and receive a new one with their birth sex.

“I’m pretty heartbroken,” said Jaelynn Abegg, a 41-year-old trans woman living in Wichita who received a letter. She said she will not turn in her license and plans to move this month to another state.

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Jaelynn Abegg, a singer-songwriter who also drives for Lyft, said she is moving because of Kansas’ new law.Courtesy Jaelynn Abegg

“It is a continuation of the message that the Legislature has been sending out for years now, and that is that transgender people are not welcome in Kansas,” she said.

Two anonymous trans residents sued Kansas last month, arguing that the law violates state protections for personal autonomy, privacy, equality, due process and freedom of speech. On Tuesday, Douglas County District Judge James McCabria declined to grant a temporary restraining order against the law while the case proceeds.

McCabria wrote in his decision that there isn’t enough evidence to show that trans people will face harassment and discrimination if they have to use bathrooms or show IDs that conflict with their gender identities.

Kansas law was years in the making

Kansas had allowed trans people to update the gender markers on their IDs since 2007. Then in 2023, it changed its legal definition of sex to be male or female and assigned at birth.

Fifteen other states have made a similar change in the past few years — and President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring that there are only two unchangeable sexes. The State Department now prohibits trans people from changing the gender markers on their passports.

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Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sued the state, arguing that allowing people to update their gender markers violated the 2023 law. Last year, the Kansas Supreme Court affirmed an appeals court decision and allowed gender marker changes to resume.

Transgender Rights-IDs
Protesters in Topeka spoke out against the Kansas law that invalidates hundreds of driver’s licenses and birth certificates for transgender people. John Hanna / AP

In January, Kobach backed the new bill he said would “correct an error” by the courts. The state Senate added a provision prohibiting trans people from using bathrooms that align with their gender identities in government-owned buildings. It was passed without public comment. The penalties for violating the provision can be $1,000 for individuals and up to $125,000 for government entities with more than one infraction.

Last month, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the bill, saying the Legislature “should stay out of the business of telling Kansans how to go to the bathroom and instead stay focused on how to make life more affordable for Kansans.” Days later, the Republican-held state Legislature overrode her veto.

Kansas House Speaker Daniel Hawkins, a Republican, said in a statement at the time that the law’s purpose was to protect women. “This isn’t about scoring political points, but doing what’s right for women and girls across our communities,” he said, according to the Kansas Reflector. Hawkins did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment.

State Rep. Mark Schreiber, the only Republican to vote against the bill, told NBC News he agreed with the appeals court that Kobach could not show how allowing trans people to change the gender markers on their licenses caused harm to the state.

“I don’t have any trans folks in my family, but I know trans people,” he said, adding that they aren’t looking for special privileges and just want to live their lives. “And we seem to keep passing laws that keep getting in the way of that.”

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Harper Seldin, one of the ACLU attorneys involved in the lawsuit, said during court arguments Friday that the Kansas Legislature singled out trans Kansans “for unique social stigma.”

“They were suddenly required, with no notice or opportunity to be heard, to present themselves to the DMV to obtain driver’s licenses that announced to everyone — the teller at the bank, the clerk at the hotel, the poll worker on election day — that they are transgender,” Seldin said.

Trans people have long reported facing more harassment and discrimination while using IDs that don’t align with their gender identity or expression, and many trans Kansans said they fear that their daily risk of facing such harassment would only increase as a result of the law.

‘There was no plan whatsoever’

Over the last five years, dozens of states have considered bills targeting transgender people, but the majority of those have targeted people’s ability to play on school sports teams that align with their gender identities and minors’ access to transition-related care. In the last few years, state and federal policies have shifted to focus on changing legal definitions of sex and restricting access to updated identity documents.

A flag promoting LGBTQ rights sits in the House chamber as Republicans prepare to push for a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors last year.
A flag promoting LGBTQ rights sits in the House chamber as Republicans prepare to push for a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors last year.John Hanna / AP

Logan Casey, director of policy research at the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ think tank that tracks legislation, described these broader laws as “gender regulation laws” that attack the fundamental rights and identity of trans people.

“The point all along for the people pushing these bills and these attacks has been to single out transgender people and create a license to discriminate against transgender people and remove them from public life,” he said. “In effect, trying to get them to stop being transgender.”

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Kansas’ law took effect immediately after it was published in the register Feb. 26. A spokesperson for the Kansas Department of Revenue told the Kansas Reflector that the law invalidated about 1,700 licenses. The department did not respond to a request for comment. During the court hearing Friday, Kobach said the department had so far sent letters to 275 Kansans and 138 had received new licenses.

Andrea Ellis, a 34-year-old trans woman living in Wellington, said she received a letter Wednesday even though she never changed the gender marker on her license — she only legally changed her name on it in December. She drove to the DMV the next day, where she said staff were confused about what to do and said her license had a “flag” on it.

Andrea Ellis
Andrea Ellis, a maintenance technician living in Wellington, said she had to make two trips to the DMV to get temporary licenses.Courtesy Andrea Ellis

They cut the corner off her license and gave her a temporary one. But later that day, they called her and said she had to return to the DMV because they made an error. When she went back, she said they gave her another temporary license that looked the same as the first.

“They claim that it was thought out, and everything else, but there was no grace period unlike any other kind of rollout program,” Ellis said. “There was no plan whatsoever.”

Some trans residents, like Matthew Neumann, said they still haven’t received any notification regarding their licenses. Neumann, who is the executive director of the LGBTQ Foundation of Kansas, said he’s been checking the validity of his license every day on the Kansas Department of Revenue website, and it’s still valid as of Friday.

Neumann said his organization has raised funds to help trans Kansans pay to update their licenses. Getting a license with an updated gender marker costs $8.75, while receiving a new ID is $26.

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Matthew Neumann and his service dog, Zelda.
Matthew Neumann and his service dog, Zelda. Neumann helped organize a “pee-in” in the State Capitol bathrooms last month to protest the law.Courtesy Matthew Neumann

Neumann has lived in Larned, Kansas, for 20 years and said he will never leave. He said he’s been threatened over his restroom use, and he fears he could face more harassment under the new law.

“I’m just disappointed and frustrated,” he said. “I’m just hoping that maybe this is the wake up call we need,” he said.



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Farmer receives support from community after Kansas wildfire destroys home

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Farmer receives support from community after Kansas wildfire destroys home


KISMET, Kan. (KWCH) – Last month, wildfires in southern Kansas raged, destroying farmer Randall Thorp’s property, tools and 960 acres of land.

As he handles the massive cleanup project, he knows he is not alone.

“It’s about the greatest show of love I’ve ever seen,” Thorpe said. “I didn’t realize that I would have all this support in my greatest time of need.”

The two main contributors to Thorp’s optimism are the community around him and his faith.

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“I’ve seen a lot of darkness that, because of my faith in Jesus, I can see the light in my heart,” Thorp said. “And that’s what keeps me going.”

Throughout the past few weeks, friends, family and neighbors have come to his property to help sort out and clean up the debris.

“I come out here and I’m by myself and I find it hard to do anything, but when a group of people all shows up and they’re wanting to work, then I’m ready to get to work with them, and they’re all ready to help me,” Thorp said.

Even with all the uncertainty following the fire, Thorp has been able to feed the 150 cattle he has, a number that is now growing since it is calving season. Friendly helpers are providing free hay for his animals to eat.

There’s a long way until things will be back to normal, but Thorp is determined to get there.

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“You know, I can see some light at the end of the tunnel, but I’ve got to stay strong and keep it going and make it through,” Thorp said.

The powerful show of dependability from fellow Kansans is something he will never forget.

“I’ve been shown lots of love,” Thorp said.

You can still donate to Thorp’s GoFundMe here.

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Kansas City International Airport reopens after ‘threat’ prompts FBI, cops to swarm terminal

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Kansas City International Airport reopens after ‘threat’ prompts FBI, cops to swarm terminal


Kansas City International Airport in Missouri was partly evacuated over a “threat” Sunday afternoon but has since resumed “normal operations,” officials said.

“The security incident at [Kansas City International Airport] is now clear and normal operations are resuming,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote on X.

“I want to thank law enforcement including the FBI for their timely response. The safety of our passengers, airport staff, and crew members is always our number one priority.”

Airport representative Jackson Overstreet told The Associated Press in an email that the threat was reported at 11:50 a.m. local time, at which point an entire terminal was evacuated.

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He said planes that landed after the threat were being held on the taxiway until it could be fully investigated.

Passengers gather on the tarmac at Kansas City International Airport after being evacuated due to a “threat” on March 8, 2026. J McDonough via KCTV

Airport staff gathered on the tarmac in front of a terminal and jet bridge.
Roughly 2,000 people were ushered out of the terminal and onto the tarmac, a spokesperson said. Peter Everett via KCTV

FBI rep Dixon Land said the bureau was “aware of the incident” and worked with “law enforcement officials to determine the credibility of a threat.”

Passenger Logan Hawley, 29, told the outlet he was getting ready to board a flight to Texas when he saw police and K-9 units swarming the terminal.

“Suddenly there was an airport worker saying ‘immediately evacuate,’ people got up fast and rushed out of there,” Hawley said.

Roughly 2,000 people were ushered out of the terminal and onto the tarmac, he said.

Photos and video from the airport circulating online show large groups of passengers being led onto the tarmac or funneling out of the terminal.

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