Mother speaks after her daughter was killed in Security-Widefield shooting

SECURITY-WIDEFIELD, Colo. (KRDO) -- A shooting in the Security-Widefield area left three dead. An El Paso County deputy, the suspect, and his ex-wife, Alex Paz.

Police believe that the suspect, John Paz, shot Alex then Deputy Andrew Peery before shooting himself.

The mother of Alex Paz spoke with KRDO after Alex was killed in a shooting last night.

Rosetta Kelley, Alex's mother, says that "she lights up the room when she walks in. Her smile, she always has a happy smile."

Kelley says that Alex loved animals and was just about finished with her college courses and training to become a veterinary technician.

Alex moved to Colorado Springs with John Paz two years ago, according to Kelley.

Prior to moving to Colorado, she served in the Marines, training at Parris Island in South Carolina before her transfer to Twentynine Palms, California.

She was medically discharged due to an injury sustained while training, according to Kelley.

John Paz, meanwhile, served with the Army National Guard in California.

Alex's mother also confirmed what El Paso County court records indicated, that the couple was currently going through a divorce, and John had moved out of the house some time ago.

Several of Alex's friends had recently told her mother that John was cheating, and that led to the separation.

"I was angry, and I still am," she told KRDO when asked about the cheating.

However, Kelley never thought John was capable of something like this.

"Before they moved to Colorado Springs and before we moved here (Mississippi), they came up a few times and spent Christmas with us, stayed at our house.  We thought he was a good kid, and we liked him," says Kelley.

Kelley thinks that the divorce pushed John over the edge.

Part of the reason she is speaking out now is to make sure her daughter is not forgotten, and not overshadowed by the other lives lost on Sunday night.

"They have glorified the cop-killer (John Paz), and a fallen officer is something to be sorry about, but my daughter needs to be known more than just a girl on the grass," she said, "the world was a brighter place with her in it."

She believes Alex was done with John and wouldn't go through another cheating relationship again.

Alex's family plans to have her remains sent home to Oregon. There she will be buried with full military honors at Willamette National Cemetery, the resting place of her grandmother and grandfather.

The dates of the burial have not been finalized.

They are currently waiting for the coroner's office to release her body.

There is no fundraiser set up to support her family with those expenses but, if one is established it will be posted on KRDO.com