Raytown students reportedly pass hanging body during bus ride to school

One day before being released for summer break, Raytown students saw a body hanging from a tree during their bus ride to school.

Raytown Middle School released a letter to parents, saying 14 students on bus 52 witnessed a police crime scene Tuesday morning.

Kari Thompson, a spokeswoman with the Kansas City Police Department, said a person took his or her life in the 4600 block of Wallace, within Kansas City limits.

Shalonda Willis-Howard wrote on Facebook that her son was one of the students on the bus that passed the scene. An official with the school called and told her that her son had seen a dead body.

“THEY NEVER SAID MY CHILD SEEN A HANGING DEAD BODY!!!!” Willis-Howard wrote.

In its letter, the Raytown district said it was offering support to students who witnessed the traumatic scene. The letter did not describe the scene.

Danielle Nixon, the director of communications for the district, could not comment on why more details about what students saw were not released, saying she wasn’t involved in that decision.

“When we were notified from the bus driver, all those students came in and we notified their families,” Nixon said.

Letters were eventually sent to all Raytown Middle School families, Nixon added.

“Teachers have been asked to be extra vigilant, identify students who may be having difficulty coping with the event, and encourage those students to talk with adults about their feelings,” the letter said.

On Wednesday, the Raytown Police Department released the following on its Facebook page:

This story was originally published May 24, 2017 at 3:41 PM with the headline "Raytown students reportedly pass hanging body during bus ride to school."