On March 20, 2017, Marquis Clark, 33, was fatally shot during a violent altercation inside a minivan in Kansas City near Blue Parkway and Bennington Avenue. Clark, a father and a former Ruskin High School track athlete, was traveling with four others; the group had been engaged in a freestyle rap exchange that escalated into a dispute between Clark and another passenger.

Witnesses said the argument intensified after Clark allegedly slapped the hand of 30-year-old Robert Jerell Townsend, who then reportedly drew a firearm and began shooting inside the crowded vehicle. The driver lost control and the minivan crashed into a wooded ditch. Officers found Clark and 37-year-old Shakeisha D. Urassa dead from gunshot wounds; another passenger was shot in the abdomen and fled for help.

Police located Townsend nearby, reportedly nude except for his socks and appearing under the influence of PCP; he admitted being in the van and firing his weapon, saying he ‘heard shots,’ though investigators found no evidence of outside gunfire. Townsend was charged by Jackson County prosecutors in connection with the deaths.

Did anyone have contact with Marquis or know more about that trip or the people in the van?