Thursday, September 4, 2014

KC murder victims have tie to Bates County

Brandon Howell
Brandon Howell, 34, is facing 3 counts of murder, 2 counts of assault and other charges stemming from an incident Tuesday in south Kansas City.

The three people killed in Tuesday's shooting have been identified as 69-year-old Susan Choucroun, 88-year-old Lorene Hurst, and her son, 63-year-old Darrel Hurst.

Lorene Hurst and Darrel Hurst are cousins of Denny and CJ Shannon of rural Amsterdam, Mo.

The assault victims, George and Anna Taylor, remain hospitalized with serious injuries.

The events unfolded Tuesday as police were called just after 1 p.m. to a disturbance on Woodbridge Lane just off Wornall Road on the city's south side. The cul-de-sac where the shooting took place is just outside the Blue Hills Country Club. Howell allegedly attempted to steal a vintage Jaguar automobile but was unable to get it running. The victims apparently approached Howell and were shot during the confrontation. Howell then took another vehicle and headed to the Northland where he allegedly assaulted three people at a motel. He now faces charges in Platte County from that incident.

Howell's criminal record is violent

Convictions include 12 years for armed robbery in Garnder, KS for aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping, aggravated assault, attempted aggravated robbery and animal cruelty- Howell admitted to decapitating a pet cat during the robbery.
In 2009 a Jackson County jury  acquitted Howell in the killing of Johnson County teenagers Tabitha Brewer, 16, and Nick Travis, 18, in April of 1998. The body of Nick Travis was found later in Kansas City. The body of Tabitha Brewer has not been located. Several witnesses who testified at the trial said Howell implicated himself in the killings. But after hearing the evidence, the Jackson County jury found Howell not guilty of the charges.

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