On the night of Halloween 2020, 20-year-old Ashlyn Nicole Ketcherside of Farmington, Missouri, left home for a late-night drive after visiting her father. She accepted a ride from 36-year-old David Joshua Long of Fredericktown and the pair drove north toward St. Louis. The father’s last exchange with Ashlyn was an expression of love before she left.

Shortly before midnight on November 1, 2020, officers responded to the 5900 block of Bartmer Avenue in the West End neighborhood and found a blue sedan with both Ashlyn and Long suffering fatal gunshot wounds. Long was killed in the driver’s seat; Ashlyn had tried to hide in the backseat and was struck in the neck and leg. Police say an unknown assailant opened fire and fled the scene.

Ashlyn’s family believes Long may have been lured to the location as part of a setup and that Ashlyn was an innocent bystander. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has faced a lack of witnesses and concrete leads, and no arrests or publicly named suspects have been announced. If anyone knew Ashlyn, Long, or saw activity in the West End that night, please come forward with information.