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A Missouri businesswoman and mother was killed when a police SUV responding to an emergency slammed into her luxury vehicle, raising questions about the deadly crash.
Misty Leslie, 48, died after an Independence Police Department officer driving a 2024 Ford Explorer struck the passenger side of her 2022 Audi SQ5 at an intersection outside Kansas City shortly after 1 a.m. on Oct. 11.
The Independence Police Department said in a statement that the officer was traveling west on U.S. Highway 24 with his emergency lights and siren activated when Leslie’s northbound Audi entered the intersection.
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Police said early evidence suggests the officer had a green light and Leslie had a red light when the crash occurred. Both drivers were wearing seat belts.
Misty Leslie, left, poses with another person in an undated photo. Leslie, a Missouri mother and businesswoman, was killed in a crash involving a police SUV responding to an emergency Oct. 11, 2026. (Credit: ebw_photography_by_misty_ Instagram)
Leslie was taken to a hospital with serious injuries and later died. The officer was also hospitalized but was not seriously injured.
Police have not said how fast either vehicle was traveling or what emergency the officer was responding to. The crash remains under investigation.
The collision comes months after Independence police tightened restrictions on high-speed pursuits following years of scrutiny over the department’s driving practices.
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During a March City Council meeting, interim Police Chief Douglas Brinkley said Independence officers conducted 541 pursuits in 2025, compared with 137 by Kansas City police, The Kansas City Star reported.
Misty Leslie, left, smiles alongside a friend in an undated photo. The Missouri businesswoman and mother died following an Oct. 11 crash involving an Independence police SUV. (Credit: ebw_photography_by_misty_ Instagram)
“I do think we have a reputation for pursuing but we still have to balance that risk versus reward,” Brinkley told council members.
A 2024 investigation by the newspaper found that Independence led the Kansas City metropolitan area in high-speed police pursuits. More than 1,200 pursuits across the region in 2022 resulted in over 150 crashes and 51 injuries, with Independence accounting for about one-third of those injuries.
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The department revised its policy earlier this year to restrict pursuits for minor traffic violations and city ordinance offenses. Leslie’s crash, however, occurred while an officer was responding to an emergency call, not during a reported pursuit.
Fox News Digital has contacted the Independence Police Department seeking details about the officer’s speed, the emergency call, his duty status and whether any video captured the crash.
The Independence Police Department headquarters in Missouri. The department is investigating an Oct. 11, 2026, crash involving one of its police SUVs that killed businesswoman and mother Misty Leslie. (Google Maps)
A public records request has also been submitted under Missouri’s Sunshine Law seeking crash reports, dispatch records, available footage and the department’s emergency-driving policies.
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Leslie was a district manager with Signet Jewelers, where she supported the Banter by Piercing Pagoda brand, and owned EBW Photography, a business focused on capturing important moments in people’s lives, her obituary said.
Family members remembered her as a determined, competitive leader who cared deeply about her employees and brought passion to everything she did.
But her greatest source of pride was her daughter, Emarea Leslie.
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“Of all the titles Misty held throughout her life, being Emarea’s mom was the one that mattered most,” the obituary read.
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Leslie’s friend Christel Meinhold also paid tribute to the single mother, describing a close friendship built around raising their children and supporting each other through life’s challenges.
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Misty Leslie, 48, was a district manager with Signet Jewelers and owned EBW Photography. She was killed in an Oct. 11, 2026, crash involving an Independence Police Department SUV. (Credit: ebw_photography_by_misty_ Instagram)
“If you knew Misty, you knew that woman couldn’t do ANYTHING halfway,” Meinhold wrote in a Facebook tribute, recalling Leslie’s dedication to her career, photography and motherhood.
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The women also developed close relationships with each other’s children, with Meinhold describing Leslie as an important presence in her son’s life.
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“I wish we had one more three-hour conversation that solved absolutely nothing,” Meinhold wrote.
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A funeral service for Leslie was held Oct. 19 in Lee’s Summit, Missouri.
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Fox News Digital has also contacted the Missouri State Highway Patrol to determine whether it is assisting with the investigation, along with Signet Jewelers for comment on Leslie’s death.