YOUNGSVILLE, N.C. – Family and friends gathered in Youngsville on Sunday to remember a pregnant woman who was murdered last week.
Kimberly Dianne Richardson was shot to death April 18 behind a Party City store near Triangle Town Center. Police have charged her boyfriend, 25-year-old Daniel Steele, with her murder.
Richardson was six months pregnant at the time of her death. Her child, a baby girl named Lacy Dianne, survived after doctors performers an emergency cesarean section.
Loved ones said Richardson will be remembered as a woman with a passionate love for Christ and life. She was also very excited about becoming a mother.
“These were not the circumstances we had in mind,” said roommate Lauren Byerley. “But it helps a lot to know there is part of her still here with us. It gives us something to hold onto a little bit.”
Family friend Drew Garrison described Richardson has having “an infectious personality.”
“She had a way of just filling up a room with a smile,” he said.
Penney Smith said Richardson’s daughter is still in the hospital, and she asked that people continue to pray for Lacy.
“You look at the legacy she’s left with her child,” Smith said. “We can support the family — we can learn and speak to them about how we can help in raising her daughter.”
Steele is being held without bond.
