Innocent bystander killed in Deep Ellum nightclub shooting was single mother

DALLAS - Friends said a Houston woman who died after being struck by a stray bullet in Deep Ellum early Wednesday morning was a single mother in town for spring break.

Danielle Jones was inside Bitter End, at the corner of Malcolm X Boulevard and Elm Street, when she was shot.

Police say the gunman shot 37-year-old Rickey Gossett on an outdoor patio, killing him, and one of the bullets went through a window, striking Jones inside.

The gunman got away.

Now, both police and Jones’ loved ones are pleading for anyone with information to come forward.

"She went to the Sugar Factory there in Dallas, like let him get the biggest ice cream. Like, she just the one that is always willing to go above and beyond," Brittney Hicks recalled.

Hicks said her best friend, Jones, had traveled from Houston to Dallas for spring break.

The single mother was eager to please her son, who wanted to go to Six Flags.

"She's the only person I know that works two jobs. Her second job was just to put a college fund away for her son, just so that she can make sure that he doesn't experience struggles that she had to," Hicks said.

Friends said after spending the day with her son, Jones went out for drinks with friends and family.

Police said the shooting happened just before 1:30 a.m., when the gunman fired multiple shots, killing Gossett.

One of the rounds went through a window, killing Jones.

"She was a mom, like, she was a friend, a daughter. You know, she was loved and, you know, she didn't deserve it," Hicks said.

Dallas police said the gunman, who wore a ski mask, ran north on Elm Street after the shooting.

Police have not shared a possible motive. They also haven’t said whether they have surveillance of the shooting, but FOX 4 noticed two security cameras perched at the corners of Bitter End’s patio.

"Just imagine if it was your family. Just try to put yourself in the place in the shoes of her family. This is different when someone is sick, when you are able to kind of prepare yourself. But something like this, this shouldn't happen," Hicks added.

Jones’ loved ones and police are now asking for the public’s help, in case anyone saw something that night or knows anything about the gunman.

"Just hope if you can find it in your heart to help anything, anything, even the most minuscule thing, you may not think matters. Just, you know, please come forward with it," Hicks said. "She's a light and she’s going to continue to shine."

Police said a third person was injured in that shooting by a bullet fragment, but that injury was not serious.