Family mourns mother, daughter killed near Lawrence

The family of a mother and daughter killed in a double murder-suicide near Lawrence is planning a celebration of life for the two.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports 36-year-old Erin Berg and her 3-year-old daughter Mazey Berg were found dead Sunday. Police say Mazey’s father, 41-year-old Peter Sander, fatally shot them and himself.

Berg’s family is planning a celebration of life for the mother and daughter Saturday in Lawrence. Their obituary says their deaths are the result of “a senseless act of domestic violence.”

Berg’s mother, Kim Thomason, says her daughter and Sander never married but shared custody of Mazey. Thomason says Sander had been mentally and emotionally abusive but that he had never physically abused Mazey or her mother beforehand.

She says Berg was empathetic and genuine.


Information from: Lawrence (Kan.) Journal-World, http://www.ljworld.com.