‘We’re going to get answers’: Family mourns woman left fatally shot near Swope Park

A week has passed since 23-year-old Alexxandra Christian Sonny Morris was found shot and killed early in the morning near the Kansas City Community Gardens.

The homicide has not been solved, but her mother, Deborah Crummey, said Monday she is confident answers will come.

“As of right now, the information is forthcoming, we have a lot of leads,” Crummey said. “Hopeful isn’t even the word I would use. We’re going to get answers.”

Kansas City police released Morris’ name Monday. She had been found shot and killed shortly before 1 a.m. on Dec. 11 at East 70th Street and Kensington Avenue, just west of Swope Park. Police had responded to an ambulance call and found her body near the road.

It is unclear exactly what happened to her, Crummey said, but detectives are working on the case and taking information through the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.

Morris was a Lee’s Summit North High School graduate and had worked as a piercing and hair model. She had been thinking of pursuing a career in hair dressing or radiology, her mother said.

The last time she saw Morris was when the family gathered for Thanksgiving. It had been a long time since some family members had seen her.

“It was a good Thanksgiving,” Crummey said.

The family is planning a candlelight vigil for Morris Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the J.C. Nichols Memorial Fountain near the Country Club Plaza. Family members have also started a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral costs.

This story was originally published December 18, 2017 at 3:19 PM with the headline "‘We’re going to get answers’: Family mourns woman left fatally shot near Swope Park."