On July 14, 2019, 23-year-old Brian K. Jones-Woodruff Jr. was fatally shot in the parking lot of a McDonald’s near Interstate 70 and U.S. 40 Highway in Independence, Missouri. The shooting unfolded around 12:40 p.m. after a dispute about a stolen bicycle. A female witness had identified a man she said threatened her over the bike; she pointed him out when a white Dodge Journey arrived carrying Matthew A. Woodward, 34, and Erica J. Williams, 32. Shots were fired from the vehicle. Jones-Woodruff was standing nearby as a bystander and was struck and killed; the intended target was wounded and survived.

Investigators used surveillance footage and witness statements to identify the vehicle and suspects. Police recovered a 9mm Smith & Wesson handgun Williams had bought months earlier; ballistic testing matched shell casings from the scene. Two days after the killing Williams had filed a police report saying the Dodge had been stolen. On August 1, 2019, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office charged Woodward and Williams each with second-degree murder and armed criminal action; Woodward faced additional counts related to the wounded victim. Did anyone in the area see the white Dodge Journey that afternoon or remember the confrontation in the parking lot?