Officials said the fatal attack followed a short dispute at a north St. Louis County drive-thru.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A fatal shooting at a Steak ’n Shake drive-thru has become a first-degree murder case and a flashpoint for a grieving family’s demand to stop sudden public violence.
Police said the April 8 shooting killed 32-year-old Chauncia Meekins, an employee working the drive-thru window, and injured a second worker. The accused shooter, 20-year-old Jada Bell, was arrested and charged April 20. The case has drawn attention because investigators said the violence followed a dispute over a food order at a place where workers and customers normally interact for only minutes.
The Steak ’n Shake is in the 11000 block of Bellefontaine Road in Spanish Lake, north of St. Louis. Police said Bell drove a white SUV to the drive-thru window late at night and argued with employees, including Meekins. Family members said the dispute involved onion rings. According to the probable cause statement, Bell threw a drink cup at Meekins, who threw a drink back. Police said Bell then fired several rounds from a handgun. Meekins was shot multiple times and died from her injuries at the restaurant. Another employee was shot in the hand and taken to a hospital. The shooting was reported about 11:35 p.m., turning the restaurant into a homicide scene just before midnight.
The public reaction grew as relatives described the person behind the name in the police report. Tamela Washington, Meekins’ mother, said her daughter had been cheerful when they spoke earlier that day. They talked about Meekins’ birthday, which was coming April 23, and about a favorite meal Washington planned to cook. Washington later said she could not understand why anyone would kill over fast food. She described Meekins as loving, caring and friendly. In another interview, she said Meekins was “bright” and “funny” and worked hard for what she had. Those descriptions became part of the public record because the case, at first, had more grief than answers: police had a dead worker, an injured co-worker and an unknown shooter who had left the scene.
County officials announced charges 12 days after the shooting. Bell faces first-degree murder in Meekins’ death, first-degree assault in the wounding of the second worker, unlawful use of a weapon and three counts of armed criminal action. Police said the incident was captured by surveillance footage from the restaurant. They also said Bell’s cellphone was in the area when the shots were fired. Spectrum News reported that police cited witness identification and DNA evidence as additional parts of the investigation. Bell was held on a $1 million cash-only bond with no 10% option. Authorities said the charges are accusations, and Bell remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
At the charge announcement, St. Louis County officials used the case to speak about violence prevention. Prosecutor Melissa Price-Smith said the community needs to reach young people before conflicts become deadly. Col. Kenneth Lohr of the St. Louis County Police Department said the arrest could not repair the family’s loss but could provide some comfort. Their comments reflected the disturbing nature of the allegations: a brief argument at a service window, a thrown drink and then gunfire into a workplace. Officials did not describe any prior relationship between Bell and Meekins. The available police account suggests the two came into contact through the restaurant transaction, and the case grew from that single encounter.
Meekins’ family went further, saying they wanted prosecutors to pursue the death penalty. Her cousin, Anthony Willhite, said relatives did not seek that outcome for revenge but because they wanted the case to send a message. Missouri law permits a death sentence in some first-degree murder cases, but it is not automatic. Prosecutors would need to make formal decisions, and a jury would have to consider legal requirements before such a sentence could be imposed. As of the reports reviewed, prosecutors had not publicly announced whether they would seek death. The ordinary path of the case begins with hearings, evidence review and decisions about bond, motions and trial scheduling.
The second worker’s injury is central to the legal case but has drawn less public attention. Police have said only that the worker, a male employee, was shot in the hand and had injuries that were not life-threatening. His name has not been released. The first-degree assault charge signals that prosecutors view the gunfire as a separate violent act against him, not only as part of the homicide. If the case goes to trial, his account may help establish the order of events inside the restaurant, what employees could see from the drive-thru window and how quickly the argument escalated. Surveillance video may also show the employees’ positions when shots were fired.
The shooting brought familiar public spaces into the family’s grief. The drive-thru lane was not a remote place; it was a bright, open business where people stopped for food and workers tried to finish a shift. That is part of why Willhite said the violence could have happened to anyone, anywhere. He compared it to routine moments at a convenience store or gas station. Police and prosecutors have not presented the case as random, but family members have described the loss as senseless because the reported trigger was so small. The onion rings detail has followed the case not because it explains the shooting, but because it shows how little time separated a complaint from gunfire.
The next stages will test the evidence. Defense lawyers may challenge the cellphone data, the witness identification or any DNA testing. Prosecutors may seek to use the surveillance video to show who was driving the SUV, what happened at the window and how the shots were fired. The court will also address whether Bell remains held on the same bond and what deadlines will govern discovery. Police have not said whether the handgun was recovered. They also have not released a full timeline showing when the SUV arrived, how long the argument lasted or whether any other person was inside the vehicle.
Currently, Bell’s next listed court date was April 28. As of May 18, the case remained active, Meekins’ family continued to press for accountability and St. Louis County authorities continued to handle the matter as a homicide prosecution.
Author note: Last updated May 18, 2026.