Audrii Cunningham's father and grandmother release statement following her death and accused killer
HOUSTON - On Tuesday, the body of Audrii Cunningham, an 11-year-old girl who had been missing for six days, was found in the Trinity River.
In a statement sent to FOX 26, Audrii's grandmother, Tabitha Munsch, and father expressed their grief over her death and the involvement of law enforcement.
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It was expressed that her family is deeply grieved by the circumstances surrounding her death. They thanked law enforcement for their efforts in searching for Audrii and expressed gratitude for the community's support.
In addition, the family announced a public memorial service will be held at Livingston First Baptist Church on Friday, March 1, in honor of Audrii. The service will start at 5pm and continue until 8pm. It is requested that anyone attending wear purple.
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The statement also mentions the man accused of killing Cunninngham, Don Steven McDougal,42, after Texas DPS was able to connect him to Audrii's disappearance.
The family said the system failed them due to a loophole in McDougal's criminal history.
"Unfortunately, the system failed us due to a loophole in the sex offender registration system. Don Steven McDougal had a history of disrespect for young female children, but it did not show up when we checked the registry before allowing him to stay in an old camper in our backyard while he tried to start a new life. Had we been aware of what we know now, this man would never have set foot on our property, much less been a part of our little girl’s life," said Audrii's grandmother and father.
Read the family's full statement below:
Although Audrii is gone, the Livingston community is making sure she’s never forgotten.
"I just thought, let’s make something for her. so I wanted to do something pretty," said Kelsey Murray, a landowner in Livingston.
An audience gathered to remember Cunningham with a heartfelt tribute that was adorned in purple, which was her favorite color.
"Brought all my pretties of purple here to the memorial, and it’s just growing and growing," said Lori Edgar, who traveled from Porter, Texas to decorate the memorial. "Only thing it means to me is to make it pretty, special and beautiful for her. That was beautiful."
"I have a little girl, and everybody just, how could the system fail this little child? I’m sorry, but I just hope we could have caught it sooner," said Murray.