EXCELSIOR SPRINGS, Mo. — Excelsior Springs Chief of Police Greggory Dull will tell anyone a homicide in the city is a rare occurrence, with the last happening in 2014.
But Tuesday night, Dull reports Theresa Bass was killed outside her home by her estranged partner.
“A number of times,” Dull said. “It was on the front porch of a home.”
He says two people were shot, including Bass, who was a mom of five.
“It’s shocking because it doesn’t happen in Excelsior Springs or doesn’t happen in a long time,” he said. “But as I tell people, domestic violence can happen anywhere. There’s not, ‘Oh this doesn’t happen in this part of the city.’”
Kristen Wood knew Bass and describes her as a great friend and mother.
“A very warm-hearted, devoted person. A great friend and amazing mother," Wood said.
Wood says she and Bass worked together on overnight shifts at Lawson Manor.
“She spent a lot of extra hours with our residents. The night this happened, she was at work for 12 hours,” she said.
Dull says the scene was difficult as Bass' children were inside the home.
“I’m really proud of the job the officers did, couldn’t have been more proud of them, actually,” he said.
National statistics show when a woman is murdered, 50% of the time it’s by a romantic partner.
"That is the hurdle, that is the challenge, convincing victims to get out of those situations,” Dull said. “By the time a female victim calls 911 to report domestic violence abuse, she’s been physically assaulted upwards of 20 times.”
Nine hours away, police say her husband was found in Floyd County, Texas.
“I really hope he spends a lot of time in prison thinking about what he did,” Wood said.
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