Melissa Marie Nickel was 31 when she was shot at 638 W. Elk St. in Freeport on April 8, 2014. She died of her injuries the next day at Rockford Memorial Hospital. Born February 13, 1983, in Monroe, Wisconsin, she had lived in Freeport, attended Freeport High School, worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant, and performed with the Diamond Studds. She was the daughter of Richard Nickel and Linda Graham and the mother of daughters Kiayla Glover and Zoey Taggart.

The shooting was attributed to her former boyfriend, Kevin Scott, who was arrested and charged in connection with the killing. Funeral services were held April 15, 2014, at Burke-Tubbs Funeral Home in Freeport, with burial at Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens.

If anyone knew Melissa, her family, or has information about the events of April 8, 2014, please come forward.