Individual Details
Bessie Marie Hays
(4 Feb 1916 - 16 Jun 1985)
SLAYING OF WELL-KNOWN COUPLE STUNS COMMUNITY OF GRAY HAWK
Lexington Herald-Leader, Lexington, Kentucky, Wednesday, June 19, 1985: While the small community of Gray Hawk mourned yesterday for a well-known Jackson County couple found slain execution-style in their home Monday, authorities remained tight-lipped about the investigation.
The bodies of Edwin C. Morris, 65, and Bessie Mae Morris, 69, were found by their son, Jerry Morris, in their ranch-style house about 8:30 a.m. Monday. Morris said he found his parents shot to death with their hands tied behind their backs.
Edwin Morris, who was found in the bedroom, and his wife, who was in the kitchen, had been shot more than once, Jackson County Coroner Murrell Lakes said. Lakes said one of the bodies had a gunshot wound to the head, but declined to discuss the case further.
Local authorities - among them Mrs. Morris' brothers, Sheriff Fred Hays and Deputy Sheriff Jack Hays; her nephew, Deputy Sheriff Larry Hays; and her cousin, Kentucky State Police trooper Paul Hays - released little information about the murders yesterday except to say that no suspects had been identified.
Lakes said police were fearful of damaging their investigation. ''It's because we've never had nothing like this in this county. Never," he said. Lakes said that at least 200 people stood outside the home Monday for about 12 hours - from the time the bodies were discovered until officials left the scene about 8:30 p.m.
Jerry Morris said his parents were robbed, but would not say what was taken. He said there were no signs of forced entry. "Daddy must have known who it was or thought somebody needed help," he said.
Jerry Morris said his father was semiretired and had owned a used-car dealership, a service station, a grocery store and a building housing the Gray Hawk post office.
''Daddy had pneumonia and Mommy lost an eye to cancer about three years ago. I had called to check on them about 10:20 p.m., and they think it (the murders) happened sometime around midnight."
Morris asked the public yesterday for information about the murders. "If anybody out there knows anything, we'd sure appreciate them helping us. I hope nobody ever has to go what I've been through," he said.
Jerry Morris said his father had a reputation for extending credit to customers who asked for it. "The whole county's just tore up," he said. Barbara Hays, Mrs. Morris' sister-in-law and the sheriff's wife, said: ''People have lost good friends. And they're just so stunned they don't know what to do."
In addition to Jerry Morris, survivors include two other sons, Bobby Morris of Gray Hawk and Ronnie Morris of Richmond; and one daughter, Betty Reed of Mount Vernon.
Joint services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Justice & Hurst Funeral Home in McKee. Visitation will begin after 7 p.m. today.
Note: In 1987 two men were sentenced to death for the murders.
Lexington Herald-Leader, Lexington, Kentucky, Wednesday, June 19, 1985: While the small community of Gray Hawk mourned yesterday for a well-known Jackson County couple found slain execution-style in their home Monday, authorities remained tight-lipped about the investigation.
The bodies of Edwin C. Morris, 65, and Bessie Mae Morris, 69, were found by their son, Jerry Morris, in their ranch-style house about 8:30 a.m. Monday. Morris said he found his parents shot to death with their hands tied behind their backs.
Edwin Morris, who was found in the bedroom, and his wife, who was in the kitchen, had been shot more than once, Jackson County Coroner Murrell Lakes said. Lakes said one of the bodies had a gunshot wound to the head, but declined to discuss the case further.
Local authorities - among them Mrs. Morris' brothers, Sheriff Fred Hays and Deputy Sheriff Jack Hays; her nephew, Deputy Sheriff Larry Hays; and her cousin, Kentucky State Police trooper Paul Hays - released little information about the murders yesterday except to say that no suspects had been identified.
Lakes said police were fearful of damaging their investigation. ''It's because we've never had nothing like this in this county. Never," he said. Lakes said that at least 200 people stood outside the home Monday for about 12 hours - from the time the bodies were discovered until officials left the scene about 8:30 p.m.
Jerry Morris said his parents were robbed, but would not say what was taken. He said there were no signs of forced entry. "Daddy must have known who it was or thought somebody needed help," he said.
Jerry Morris said his father was semiretired and had owned a used-car dealership, a service station, a grocery store and a building housing the Gray Hawk post office.
''Daddy had pneumonia and Mommy lost an eye to cancer about three years ago. I had called to check on them about 10:20 p.m., and they think it (the murders) happened sometime around midnight."
Morris asked the public yesterday for information about the murders. "If anybody out there knows anything, we'd sure appreciate them helping us. I hope nobody ever has to go what I've been through," he said.
Jerry Morris said his father had a reputation for extending credit to customers who asked for it. "The whole county's just tore up," he said. Barbara Hays, Mrs. Morris' sister-in-law and the sheriff's wife, said: ''People have lost good friends. And they're just so stunned they don't know what to do."
In addition to Jerry Morris, survivors include two other sons, Bobby Morris of Gray Hawk and Ronnie Morris of Richmond; and one daughter, Betty Reed of Mount Vernon.
Joint services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Justice & Hurst Funeral Home in McKee. Visitation will begin after 7 p.m. today.
Note: In 1987 two men were sentenced to death for the murders.
Events
| Birth | 4 Feb 1916 | Jackson Co., Kentucky |  | ||
| Marriage | Abt 1939 | Edwin C. Morris | |||
| Death | 16 Jun 1985 | Gray Hawk, Jackson Co., Kentucky | | ||
| Burial | Hays-Morris Cemetery, Gray Hawk, Jackson Co., Kentucky | |
Families
| Spouse | Edwin C. Morris (1920 - 1985) |
| Child | Bobby J. Morris (1941 - ) |
| Child | Ronald C. Morris (1942 - ) |
| Child | Bettie J. Morris (1943 - ) |
| Child | Jerry D. Morris (1946 - ) |
| Father | Thomas R. Hays (1894 - 1947) |
| Mother | Ruby F. Brumback (1897 - 1973) |
| Sibling | Elbert E. Hays (1917 - 1992) |
| Sibling | Minnes Hays (1920 - 1997) |
| Sibling | Everdean Hays (1922 - 2008) |
| Sibling | Delbert Hays (1925 - 2014) |
| Sibling | Jack W. D. Hays (1927 - 1992) |
| Sibling | Carl Frederick "Fred" Hays (1929 - 2018) |
| Sibling | Hershel Henderson Hays (1931 - 2010) |
| Sibling | Peggy J. Hays (1933 - 1983) |
| Sibling | Eldon Robert Hays (1935 - 2017) |
| Sibling | Sada E. Hays (1937 - 2018) |
| Sibling | Shirley Hays (1939 - 2012) |
Endnotes
1. 1930 Census Jackson Co., Kentucky.
2. Kentucky Birth Index 1911-1999.
3. Social Security Death Index.
4. Cemeteries of Jackson County [Kentucky] 1858-1995 by Pauline Kerby & Judy Ball, Page 13.
5. Social Security Death Index.
6. Cemeteries of Jackson County [Kentucky] 1858-1995 by Pauline Kerby & Judy Ball, Page 13.