Police ID young girl killed after being shot inside home in Kansas City neighborhood

A young girl found shot inside a Kansas City home died Wednesday night after being taken to a hospital, a police spokesman said.

The victim has been identified as 11-year-old Kourtney Freeman, Capt. Jake Becchina with the Kansas City Police Department said Thursday morning. She would have turned 12 years old next month.

The killing is the sixth homicide this year where the victim was under the age of 18, according to the data tracked by The Star.

Officers responded shortly after 9:45 p.m. Wednesday to investigate reports of shots being fired near East 33rd Street and Flora Avenue, Becchina said.

While officers were en route, they were told that there had been a shooting and the victim was inside a home in the 3300 block of Flora in the Linwood Homeowners-Ivanhoe neighborhood.

Arriving officers were led inside a home, where they found Kourtney. She was unresponsive, and officers began rendering aid, Becchina said. Emergency medical workers took the victim to a hospital, where she was declared dead a short time later.

Detectives were looking for witnesses and spoke with people who were at the home when officers arrived to determine the circumstances that led up to the fatal shooting. Crime scene investigators also responded to the house to collect evidence.

On Thursday, police said their preliminary indication is the victim was inside the home when she was struck by gunfire that came from outside.

The killing is Kansas City’s 41st homicide of the year, according to data tracked by The Star, which includes fatal police shootings. By this time last year, which was Kansas City’s deadliest year, there were 48 homicides.

Anyone with information about the homicide is asked to contact the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477). Information submitted anonymously to the TIPS Hotline can earn a reward of up to $25,000. People can also contact homicide detectives directly at 816-234-5043.

Police are working with Partners for Peace in all of the city’s homicide investigations to monitor risks for retaliation and provide social services for those affected by the homicides.

The police department is also assisting violent crime victims through Missouri’s Protection Program for Victims/Witnesses of Violent Crime. Temporary or permanent relocation may be available but must be pre-approved. The Missouri Department of Public Safety administers the program.