KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A violent rampage through a Kansas City, Missouri, neighborhood left residents shaken, traumatized, and questioning the system meant to protect them.

Weeks later, the same man struck again in a neighboring county, this time leaving behind a trail of felony charges.

Many in the community are asking: What if he had been stopped the first time?

“He wanted to hurt somebody.”

Video shows man holding whiskey bottle, bloodied

It started just before sunset on April 23 in Columbus Park, a neighborhood just northeast of downtown Kansas City. What unfolded next felt like a scene from a movie except this was all too real for the victims.

“He was walking way too close. I asked if he needed something, and he said no,” Camille said, one of the victims. Surveillance video and witness accounts confirm what happened next: Dalton Shows, bloodied and holding a bottle of whiskey, began a terrifying and erratic spree through the area.

He first targeted a gas station in the River Market, then tried to get into a cash register at Nature’s Own. Employees managed to push him out they called 911. But no officer ever responded to their call.

From there, he moved next door to Le Fou Frog, then spotted Sarah Reinhardt out walking her dog.

“I kind of went into survival mode,” Reinhardt told FOX4. “I just did what I had to do.”

Woman runs to cafe for help

She ran to Vietnam Café for help.

“This lady ran up the street into our restaurant and she looked very frantic and scared and she came up to one of us and say hey can you please call 911 – someone chasing me – someone is following me,” recalled Thu Pham, a server at the restaurant.

They called and police never responded to the Café. Next, Camille became his target.

“He told me to turn around and come with him or he was going to smash my dog’s head in,” Camille recalled.

She ran to a neighbor’s door, desperate for help, but Shows caught up to her.

“He came up behind me. He put his arms around my waist and told my neighbors I was with him that I was crazy. He pulled me to the ground. He was trying to take me somewhere,” she said.

Her neighbor, whom she now calls her hero, punched Shows in the face, breaking her hand but managing to slow the attack until others could intervene.

Police eventually showed up. But what happened next left many in disbelief.

No criminal charges for Kansas City man

Two tickets and released that same night. No criminal charges. No follow-up, according to multiple victims.

“I knew he wanted to hurt somebody, and I knew he was going to do this again,” Camille said.

And he did. On Mother’s Day, just two weeks later, Shows was arrested again this time in Johnson County, Kansas.

He broke into multiple businesses, attacked people, and led officers on a high-speed chase. This time, he was charged with five felonies. He’s currently in jail on a $50,000 bond, and if he posts it, he’ll be placed on house arrest.

“We treat this pretty seriously,” said Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe. “Making sure people are safe that they can go to work without being terrorized or assaulted those are the things that I think are important for our community.”

So why weren’t charges filed the first time?

Prosecutor’s office claims no referral for charges was sent

That’s the question many are still asking. According to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office, they never received a referral for charges from the Kansas City Police Department.

KCPD tells FOX4 that officers were dispatched within two minutes and two reports were filed. But more than seven people say they called 911, and several victims say they’re still waiting to hear from a detective.

“You’re supposed to be helping us, we’re the ones that can’t do anything about it – we rely on you but for you to be like we’ll send someone down but then never come is really frustrating,” Thu Pham said.

Beyond the legal questions, a deeper issue remains: trust.

Investigating is ongoing on Kansas City man

Several neighbors told affiliate FOX4 they no longer feel safe, and they feel as though if they call police, nothing will happen.

“I believe that if he had been arrested and kept on April 23rd, he would not have gone on his crime rampage in Overland Park on Mother’s Day,” Reinhardt said.

For now, Johnson County prosecutors say their investigation is ongoing, and more charges may still be coming.

But for many in Columbus Park, the damage is already done.