FRANCONIA – The first time Liko Kenney and Cpl. Bruce McKay met on a January night four years ago was not unlike their final, and fatal, encounter Friday night.

A prosecutor's account shows a 2003 encounter between McKay and Kenney turned violent when Kenney, yelling and resisting arrest, grabbed the officer's groin and squeezed.

"Another officer witnessed McKay yell in pain and jump as a result," a statement issued yesterday by Grafton County Attorney Rick St. Hilaire said.

Kenney, a cousin of international skiing champion Bode Miller, later pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest.

"The offenses could have resulted in a sentence of prison time," St. Hilaire said in his statement. "However, Officer Bruce McKay expressed his desire that compassion be shown to the defendant. He supported a short 15-day term of incarceration in the county jail, which was accepted by the court."

A memorial to Liko Kenney has been set up outside his parents’ home in Easton. (LORNA COLQUHOUN)

►Special Report: Officer McKay slain
►UPDATED: Mourners send condolences; you can share your thoughts

The 2003 episode bore some resemblance to the traffic stop that went awry last Friday, ending both men's lives. Both incidents began with a confrontation outside Kenney's car. Both reportedly spiraled out of control when Kenney tried to flee.

McKay died in the struggle on Route 116 last Friday. Investigators say Kenney shot him four times in the upper torso with a Colt .45, then ran him over.

A passerby who saw the shooting, Gregory Floyd, 49, of Easton, grabbed the fallen officer's gun and shot Kenney dead. State Attorney General Kelly Ayotte said Floyd was justified and would not be charged.

Court records describe several encounters between McKay and Kenney, beginning four years ago. One brief stretch in 2003 saw Kenney arrested three times. Each arrest was based on information provided by McKay.

Kenney was charged that March with two counts of marijuana possession. Those charges were eventually dismissed.

The next month, prosecutors say, McKay launched an investigation when Kenney's uncle, Bill, called police to report that Kenney was illegally off-roading on his property. The probe found Kenney in possession of a "blowdart gun," a violation of his bail conditions.

Kenney was placed under house arrest and was jailed that June after removing an electronic monitoring bracelet, according to St. Hilaire.

First meeting

The attorney's statement recounts what appears to be the introductory exchange between McKay and Kenney on Jan. 26, 2003, when the officer noticed Kenney's car in a secluded and snow-covered parking area in Franconia.

McKay didn't know Kenney back then, the statement says, "except by reputation."

According to St. Hilaire, Kenney told McKay he was relaxing, waiting for friends to join him from a Super Bowl party. Because it was cold out, Officer McKay returned to his cruiser to get his coat. Kenney then left his car and asked the officer his name. "Officer McKay gave Kenney his name, but Kenney was silent about his identity when asked," St. Hilaire said.

McKay's suspicions were aroused, St. Hilaire's statement says, when Kenney refused to hand over his driver's license. After a time, according to St. Hilaire's account, Kenney produced the license.

Before McKay returned to his cruiser to run a license check, he directed Kenney to remain in his car. However, Kenney got out of his vehicle, informing McKay that he did not have the right to his license.

"Officer McKay's concerns for his personal safety heightened when Kenney continued to approach the officer while Kenney was yelling, waving his hands and placing his hands in and out of his pockets," according to St. Hilaire. "Unknown to the officer at the time ... Kenney had knives in his pocket."

Police officers from Littleton and Bethlehem came to McKay's aid as the situation escalated, with Kenney yelling "These officers are trying to molest me" and "These officers are torturing me."

The three officers eventually subdued Kenney, who was trying to crawl beneath his car, and called in emergency responders.

"While struggling, Kenney reached out to the groin area of Officer McKay and gripped ... McKay applied lawful defensive force by engaging in a protective maneuver to successfully release Kenney's grip by striking the left side of Kenney's face," St. Hilaire wrote. "Kenney later denied that he assaulted the officer in the fashion described, but claimed that he could have applied a bite to the officer if he wanted."

Kenney was taken to Littleton Hospital, where he complained that his jaw was swollen and painful.

"There was no evidence of a fractured jaw," according to St. Hilaire.

St. Hilaire said Kenney was about to be released from the hospital when he asked the state trooper "Will you shoot me?" After the trooper replied no, Kenney said he would have to kill himself. A counselor later found Kenney competent to be released, and Kenney was booked and released to the custody of his parents.

Union Leader Correspondent Lorna Colquhoun contributed to this report.