Murder suspect still hasn't gone to trial 5 years after Spring family killed
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Five years ago Tuesday, six members of the beloved Stay family were brutally murdered in their Spring home.
The man accused of killing them, Ronald Haskell, Jr., is set to stand trial in August. His case has been reset 20 times since he was charged with the killings.
Prosecutors say Haskell went looking for his ex-wife at her sister's home in Spring.
He allegedly shot Katie and Stephen Stay, along with their five children. Only 15-year-old Cassidy survived.
The Stay family had an impact on so many lives, like close friend Tom Mixon.
"We like to refer to them in the first person because they're still with us and we know we're going to see them again," Mixon said.
Every day Moriah Davis is reminded of them. After all, she turned her living room into a dance studio for two of the girls, Becca and Emily Stay.
"We danced in the living room for about two months," Davis said.
They recruited some dancers and wanted more space. As plans were in the works, tragedy struck.
After the deadly shooting, Davis didn't give up on her mission to fulfill the dreams of Becca and Emily.
She invited more dancers and soon it grew to 80 people dancing in Davis' garage. Soon they outgrew the space.
"We looked around, I decided we needed a bigger space and then one day at Target, I saw the for lease sign," Davis said.
Across the street from Target was a place for rent. Thus, the Moriah Davis School of the Arts was born, a non-profit dance studio that proudly features photos on the wall of Becca and Emily, the two that inspired it all.
"This is home. It's home for me. It's home for a lot of people that come here. It's the way I felt when I would go to Katie's home," Davis said.
As for Cassidy, the only survivor, she's engaged to be married.
"Cassidy is a wonderful girl. She's just like her mom, she's really strong, she amazed all of us through this process," Mixon said.
If you would like to donate to the Moriah Davis School of the Arts, you can go to www.mymdsa.com/donate
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