Corey’s Network aims to continue helping families as KCMO’s homicide total increases
So far this year, there have been 162 homicides in Kansas City, Missouri
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Hours after two additional homicides increased this year’s total to 162.
The continuing stretch of violence comes during the city’s second-deadliest year on record.
Michelle Norris said the ripple effect from a homicide can spread across generations. Her son, Corey Daniel Laykovich, was killed in 2013. A suspect attacked him on his way home from a QuikTrip.
Since his death, she and her husband Robert work to offer immediate to the families of homicide victims. They co-founded Corey’s Network to connect loved ones to resources. Since 2014, Corey’s Network has helped pay for funerals for more than 350 homicide victims.
“When he ed, we wanted to make sure his name was still said by every person that ever talked about a network that was made in his honor,” Norris said.
She knows firsthand the overwhelming grief that families endure when a homicide occurs and the frustrations that can follow waiting for justice.
“It has to be every person in Kansas City, who is completely convicted to the idea that this has to stop,” Norris said.
One of Kansas City’s most recent homicides killed a man near Truman Road and The Paseo. Someone shot him around 3 a.m. outside a gas station. Police have identified him as 27-year-old Joshua R. Williams. The investigation is ongoing.
“When you murder one person, it’s not about one person,” Norris said. “It’s about the entire system. It’s about the entire family. It’s about the entire neighborhood. It’s like you’ve just dropped a 500-pound rock into a tiny pond and then caused all these waves across the entire area.”
Another neighborhood was surrounded by crime scene tape following a separate homicide near E. 49th Street and Bellefontaine Avenue. The police said that someone shot and killed 22-year-old Shayla Curts inside of a home around 8 p.m. Tuesday.
“Sometimes reaching out to someone like me, who knows exactly what you’ve gone through, is the best way to be able to vent,” Norris said. “Other people don’t understand. They really don’t.”
Survivors who lost a loved to homicide can Corey’s Network by calling 816-834-9161 or by emailing [email protected]. For more information, click here.
Anyone with information about an unsolved homicide in Kansas City, Missouri, can anonymously report a tip by calling 816-474-TIPS. For anonymous tips about a homicide that happened in KCMO, there is a reward of up to $25,000 for information that leads to an arrest. For more information, click here.
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