Fulton Public Schools community coming together after killing of teacher and student
FULTON, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Fulton Public Schools community is mourning the loss of two of its members and coming together after a double homicide in Boone County, the superintendent said Tuesday.
The Boone County Sheriff's Office was called Sunday night to the 7500 block of Lavender Drive, where deputies found the bodies of 43-year-old Allison Abitz and her 11-year-old daughter Jozee Abitz.
According to the sheriff's office, a concerned family member sparked law enforcement's visit to the home.
Allison Abitz and her daughter were both members of the Fulton Public Schools community. Allison Abitz was set to start her sixth year as a Fulton Public Schools teach Wednesday in a Bush Elementary second-grade classroom. Fulton Public Schools Superintendent Ty Crain said Jozee was set to attend sixth grade.
Crain said Allison Abitz was a very sweet and soft-spoken but accomplished teacher at the district.
"We were very blessed to have her as part of our district as well as her daughter," Crain said.
Crain said the Fulton community is mourning together.
"Fulton is a community that comes together and supports ... each other," Crain said. "I'm confident that they'll do so with this tragic situation. We'll work together (and) grieve together as we move forward and come together to be a community."
Crain said the district has four social workers on staff and multiple counselors to help students throughout the week. He said the resources will be available for as long as students need them.
Crain said the district has found a teacher for the students assigned to Allison Abitz's classroom this year.
"We have some veteran teachers on staff and we'll have one of those who didn't have a class assignment that will be able to replace that position in the interim," Crain said. "(This is) until we can find a permanent replacement."
In a Facebook post on Monday afternoon, the sheriff's department said the investigation into the deaths is ongoing. The post states there haven't been any suspects arrested or charged in relation to the deaths.
On Tuesday, Capt. Brian Leer with the Boone County Sheriff's Office said the department would not give further comment on the investigation but did say "the autopsies performed on the bodies of the homicide victims as the medical opinions and findings are very important."
Leer said the department wants answers and the investigation will reveal more information in due time.
