Kimberly Ratliff-Penton, 46, was killed during a sudden, random shooting at an Applebee’s in St. John, Missouri, on Monday, June 22, 2020. She was dining with her best friend, Lakeshia Finch, when a man who had been conversing with his own group left the restaurant and returned shortly after 9:15 p.m. to open fire. The gunman shot Ratliff-Penton and Finch at their table and then shot a third woman, an off-duty firefighter, elsewhere in the restaurant. Ratliff-Penton was fatally wounded; Finch was left paralyzed from the waist down and the firefighter was critically injured. No known connection between the shooter and the victims was reported.

Police arrested a suspect, 28-year-old Courtney Demond Washington of St. Ann, and charged him with first-degree murder, two counts of assault, and three counts of armed criminal action. Those who knew Ratliff-Penton remembered her as a cherished wife, a loving mother of two sons and an Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. member described by friends as beautiful and sweet. Her family’s last conversation with her before she left for the evening was full of expressions of love.

Are there readers who were at that Applebee’s or knew Kimberly and can share anything that might help fill gaps in what happened that night?