Remembering Maggie Long

In the small tight-knit town of Bailey, people are mourning the murder of a 17-year-old high school student.

Park County Sheriff’s Office says Maggie Long’s body was found in the remains of her house that was burned down, suspected to be caused by arson. “Everybody’s talking and everybody’s heart hurts,” says resident Amanda Wright. She says her daughter attended the same high school as Long and was close friends with her. “She used to wait for her If I was even a little bit late to volleyball,” says Wright. “Maggie was always there waiting. It broke her heart, my daughter was just, just so sad and in pieces about it all.”

Superintendent for Platte Canyon School District Dr. Brenda Krage says Long was well known and very well liked by her friends and teachers, “Student leader by all means, very caring individual I think you’ll hear many people talk about her smile.” After students and staff heard about how their friend was murdered in her home, pain and silence filled her school. “When the news came out it was very quiet, very surreal,” says Krage. “We were able to have support services on site very quickly.”

The superintendent says Long was a start student being involved in several school events and organizations. She was a lead role in the school play that was supposed to show Thursday and Friday when the cast of students decided the show could not go on without her. “The cast decided that they would cancel the performances,” says Krage.

While the community continues to mourn, they still want answers on what happened to their beloved friend. The county sheriff’s office says more answers to those questions could be released on Monday. A previously issued gag order on information regarding the case has now been lifted.