Texas couple charged in shooting death of Missouri high schooler on her way to the zoo

A couple from Texas were charged this week in the deadly freeway shooting of a 17-year-old high school girl who was driving to the zoo for a Halloween celebration. The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in Missouri charged Willie Herndon, 42, with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with last week’s attack, which killed Alyssa Wilson, authorities said Monday. Taiya Herndon, who investigators said is his wife, is charged with hindering prosecution, accused of driving her husband to an Illinois hotel 12 miles from St. Louis, prosecuting attorney Melissa Price Smith said at a news conference Monday. It’s not clear whether either of the two, from Arlington, Texas, has a lawyer.

The state public defender’s office for the area did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The attack killed Alyssa, who was on the precipice of adulthood and optimistic about the journey ahead, her father, Robert Hickman, said at the news conference. “Alyssa was 17, excited about her life, excited about her future,” he said as he teared up. The shooting occurred around 7 p.m. Wednesday, when Alyssa was driving south on Interstate 170 in Overland, Missouri, just northwest of St. Louis, said Jack Abell, chief deputy commander of the region’s Major Case Squad. She was on her way to Halloween festivities at the St.