Teen pleads guilty in Kansas City shooting death of 11-year-old Kourtney Freeman Read more at:

A Raytown teen pleaded guilty Thursday to the 2024 fatal shooting of 11-year-old Kourtney Freeman, whose death sparked community outrage and renewed calls to address violence against children. Re’Mori T. Roath, who turns 18 next month, pleaded guilty to the second-degree felony murder of Kourtney. Jackson County Judge Adam Caine accepted Roath’s plea and found him guilty of the murder charge, setting Roath’s sentencing hearing for 9 a.m. on Jan. 26. Three other felony charges — two counts of armed criminal action and a count of unlawful use of a weapon/shooting from a vehicle at a building that resulted in death — were dismissed. A photo of Kourtney Freeman who was killed in her home April 10, 2024. Kansas City Police Roath’s plea comes just days before he was scheduled for a jury trial, which was set to begin next Monday. Kourtney was shot and killed while getting ready for bed in her home in the Linwood Homeowners-Ivanhoe neighborhood on April 10, 2024. According to court documents, officers responded shortly after 9:45 p.m. to investigate reports of shots being fired near East 33rd Street and Flora Avenue. While en route, officers were told there had been a shooting and the victim was inside a home in the 3300 block of Flora. Arriving officers were led inside the home, where they found Kourtney. She was unresponsive, and officers began rendering aid. An emergency medical crew took her to a hospital, where she died a short time later. Kourtney, described as a loyal friend and straight-A student who loved basketball, attended the Ewing Marion Kauffman School, a Kansas City charter school. She was involved in after-school organizations that advocated against community violence. Police determined that Kourtney had been struck by gunfire that came from outside the home. Police said they believed the shooting was targeted. Police linked Roath to the killing through a license plate on a light-colored Chevrolet Equinox that would have been transferred to him upon the owner’s death, according to court documents. The SUV had been seen on surveillance video in the area. Cell phone data also allegedly showed Roath leaving from a location, traveling to the homicide scene and then returning to the original location, according to court documents. Roath was arrested in May 2024, and police found a Glock 17 9mm handgun at his home during a search. Ballistic tests showed the shell cases at the crime scene had been fired by the gun. Roath’s DNA was also found on the trigger of the gun, according to court documents. He was charged in Jackson County Family Court with second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. A Family Court judge certified Roath to stand trial as an adult in October 2024.