On Jan. 2, 2022, Gloria Choi made a frantic 911 call as she sat in her truck, terrified and unsure of her location.
GLORIA CHOI TO 911: I don’t know where I am … I’m scared to get out of my car.
GLORIA CHOI TO 911: He’s got a gun!
Seconds later, multiple shots ring out. Dispatchers are left waiting for any response.
Officers from the Lakewood Police Department arrived within minutes, broke a rear window to extricate Gloria and performed lifesaving measures. She was pronounced dead a short time later at a nearby hospital.
Prosecutors say the shooter — identified as Billy Rickman — approached Gloria’s truck after pinching her off on a gravel shoulder, stood at her driver’s-side window and fired nine .40-caliber rounds through the door and window. As Gloria’s truck rolled forward and struck a utility pole, the shooter made a U-turn, pulled alongside and fired five more shots through his rolled-down window, prosecutors say. In all, Rickman fired 14 times and struck Gloria at least 10 times before fleeing.
A quick lead came from Gloria’s lanyard, which identified her as manager of a nearby Holiday Inn. Detectives subpoenaed Rickman’s phone records and traced him to the Home Motel, six minutes from the murder scene. Surveillance there showed Rickman wiping down his vehicle and calling others. Investigators also linked him to a Chevy Colorado rented in his name — the same vehicle seen on motel video and later described by a hotel clerk to 911 as having “one light out.”
Surveillance from several businesses, plus footage captured at a car rental office and the motel, tied the Chevy Colorado and Rickman to the area. Rickman eluded police for four days before being found in Humboldt County, California, hypothermic and intoxicated. He was arrested in early January 2022 and charged with aggravated first-degree murder; he pleaded not guilty.
Background and stalking
Gloria, a single mother who managed hotels, met Rickman in May 2021 after he checked into her family’s hotel. He quickly courted her — sending loving texts and gifts — and soon moved in. Friends and family describe a whirlwind romance that darkened rapidly: Rickman drank heavily, used drugs, demanded money, became controlling and, by fall, physically abusive.
By November 2021 Gloria had decided to leave him. She and her son moved back in with her parents. Rickman resisted: he took Gloria’s truck without permission and was arrested for theft. A judge issued a strict no-contact order on Dec. 1, 2021.
Despite the order, Rickman allegedly stalked Gloria. She reported finding an AirTag on her car and suspected others were hidden in her truck. In the days before the killing, a string of incidents escalated: Rickman allegedly followed Gloria to a coffee shop and the mall, and surveillance captured a man slashing tires on vehicles belonging to Gloria and a friend, Jacob Blue. Gloria and Jacob reported the vandalism repeatedly; hotel surveillance showed a man puncturing tires and later slashing others, but officers said the videos were not clear enough to positively identify Rickman. Hotel staff later identified the man as driving a Chevy Colorado with a missing license plate — the same model rented by Rickman.
Over a 48-hour period, Gloria called police four times to report harassment, vehicle tampering and theft. The Tumwater officer who took one report noted Rickman owned multiple firearms and appeared “extremely manipulative,” and recommended a domestic violence no-contact order. Prosecutors say despite detailed reports — including a seven-page document Gloria provided listing violations of the no-contact order and a still frame from hotel video — law enforcement did not locate or arrest Rickman prior to Jan. 2.
Prosecutors’ case and conviction
At trial in November 2023, prosecutors played Gloria’s 911 call for jurors and presented cellphone data, GPS coordinates, surveillance videos, motel footage of Rickman wiping down his vehicle, and rental records linking him to the Chevy Colorado. They argued he stalked and hunted Gloria that night, violating the no-contact order repeatedly in the days before her death and turning off his phone only during the murder.
Defense counsel called no witnesses and did not put Rickman on the stand. The defense suggested investigators failed to consider other suspects and emphasized that Gloria never named Rickman on her 911 call, referring only to “my boyfriend.” The jury deliberated briefly — about two hours — and found Rickman guilty of aggravated murder. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Prior allegations and other victims
After Rickman’s arrest, a woman in California, Aja Houle, came forward saying she had reported being trafficked and assaulted by Rickman years earlier. Houle said he forced her into prostitution and physically abused her as a teenager; Oakland police had issued an arrest warrant in 2021 in Alameda County, but Washington prosecutors said they were never aware of that warrant while building the homicide case. Houle later contacted prosecutors working the Gloria Choi murder to offer information but says she was told the case would remain focused on Gloria’s killing.
Family, lawyers and wrongful-death suit
Gloria’s family did not attend the trial; devastated, they moved away. Meaghan Driscoll, the family’s lawyer, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Lakewood and its police department, alleging officers failed to protect Gloria despite clear warning signs and repeated reports. Driscoll and an expert witness, retired officer Russ Hicks, argue standard domestic violence training would have required officers to take stronger, proactive steps to locate and arrest Rickman — for example, issuing a BOLO (be on the lookout), following up on motel leads and acting on the detailed reports and video evidence they had been given.
Lakewood city lawyers have argued in court that police have no affirmative duty to arrest a suspect who is not at the scene, a position Driscoll disputes. As of May 2026, the wrongful death suit remained unresolved.
Impact and aftermath
Prosecutor Greg Greer, who retired in 2024, described being haunted by Gloria’s final words and the sound of her calling for her mother on that 911 call. Friends remember Gloria as devoted to her son and family; her friend Brieanna Eberly said Gloria “was part of my family” and that losing her was devastating. Gloria’s son now lives with relatives in another state.
If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.
Produced by Paul La Rosa. Megan Kelly Brown is the associate producer. Jane Shevlin is the associate producer. Greg Fisher is the development producer. Atticus Brady, Michelle Harris, Eric Modena and Diana DeCilio are the editors. Anthony Batson is the senior producer. Nancy Kramer is the executive story editor. Judy Tygard is the executive producer.