DES MOINES – An Algona police officer was shot and killed on September 13, 2023, and the man who pulled the trigger at least 8 times and was convicted for his heinous deed has lost his appeal.
On September 13, 2023, at approximately 7:53 PM, officer Kevin Cram, age 33 (at the time), of the Algona Police Department was on patrol duty in the City of Algona when he was made aware of an active arrest warrant for Kyle Ricke. Officer Cram was in the 1100 block of S. Minnesota Street in Algona when he observed Kyle Ricke, age 43 (at the time). After advising Ricke he was going to be placed under arrest, Ricke shot officer Cram. Officer Cram was located by other officers and EMS, and taken to the Kossuth Regional Health Center in Algona where he was pronounced deceased.
According to court documents:
A jury convicted Kyle Ricke of first-degree murder for shooting Officer Kevin Cram of the Algona Police Department eight times, resulting in his death. Ricke appeals, contending that the State failed to prove he acted with deliberation and premeditation. He asks that we vacate his conviction. Finding substantial
evidence showing Ricke’s conduct was deliberate and premeditated, the Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction.
Facts and Prior Proceedings:
“We need an ambulance. An officer is down. My son shot him.” This was the 911 call from a panicked Irene Ricke after watching her son, Kyle, shoot Officer Cram from just three feet away. Kyle Ricke was experiencing legal trouble—and had been for several years—stemming from strained relationships with the mothers of his two children. On a September morning in 2023, Ricke had been in court to address a harassment charge against him from one of these relationships.
While the court continued that matter for a later day, Ricke expressed to both his father and his sister that he didn’t want to go back to jail. After returning home—where he lived with his mother—Ricke began operating a skid loader to clear a walking path on the property. Irene had just arrived when Officer Cram pulled up to the residence behind her. Ricke watched his mother and Officer Cram walk to where he was working. After Ricke
dismounted the skid loader, Officer Cram told him there was a warrant for his arrest from another police department for another charge of harassment. Ricke asked to put the skid loader away, which Officer Cram permitted.
Ricke parked the skid loader near the garage. A moment later, Ricke emerged from the garage and approached Officer Cram and his mother as they walked back toward the driveway. Ricke pulled out a handgun and shot Officer Cram eight times. The bullets came in three waves—an opening blast of five shots at shoulder height in quick succession, a momentary pause, two more shots at a forty-five-degree angle after Officer Cram had collapsed to the ground, and one final shot directly over the officer. After that last shot, Ricke crouched over Officer Cram and said, “too late motherfucker.” Irene was just three feet away.
In the moments after the shooting, Ricke raised the gun to his own head. But ultimately, Ricke chose to flee the scene in his truck, before quickly returning to the residence. While running back to his truck, Ricke paused to hug his distraught mother. Irene cried, “You killed that man,” to which her son responded, “Yeah I did, because I’m fucking tired of this shit.” Then Ricke left in his truck again.
Ricke fled to his sister’s residence in Minnesota, where he later surrendered to local police.
The State charged Ricke with first-degree murder, a class “A” felony, in violation of Iowa Code sections 707.1 and 707.2 (2023). He pleaded not guilty. The case went to jury trial in July 2024.
At trial, the State presented Irene’s 911 call, Officer Cram’s dashcam and bodycam footage, photos of the Ricke residence, a diagram of the crime scene, photos of the weapon used, and photos of Officer Cram’s injuries. The State also presented testimony from Irene, Ricke’s sister, the dispatcher who received the
911 call, responding officers, investigating officers, crime scene specialists, and a firearm specialist. The medical examiner who performed the autopsy also testified in detail about Officer Cram’s gunshot wounds—three to the head, four to the torso, and one to the left hand.
The jury convicted Ricke of first-degree murder. The district court sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.