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Kate Ranta, a survivor of domestic violence, is the focus of Toxic Season 1 Episode 4, Don’t Shoot Mommy, airing June 2, 2025, on Investigation Discovery. The episode revisits her 2012 attempted murder at the hands of her ex-husband, retired Air Force Major Thomas Maffei, who shot Ranta and her father in front of her young son, William.
Kate Ranta had secured a temporary restraining order after a prior incident, but gaps in enforcement allowed Maffei to purchase a 9mm firearm, which he later used in the attack.
Since surviving the shooting, Kate Ranta has become an advocate for domestic violence prevention and gun safety. As per a CBS12 report dated October 3, 2024, she now lives in Massachusetts with her son, having relocated for stronger legal protections.
She continues her activism through speaking engagements and her online platform, Survivor Inspired Speak Up – SISU. The upcoming episode Don’t Shoot Mommy airing on June 2, 2025, at 10:00 pm on ID, explores the challenges she faced and the broader failures of systems meant to protect victims.
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Maffei shot Kate Ranta in the breast and the hand and was later sentenced to 60 years in prison for attempted murder and related charges
On November 2, 2012, Kate Ranta was shot twice, once in the chest and once in the hand, by her estranged husband, retired Air Force Major Thomas Maffei. The incident occurred at her Coral Springs, Florida, apartment while her father and 4-year-old son, William, were present.
The attack followed years of escalating abuse, ignored warnings, and systemic failures, all of which are examined in Toxic Season 1, Episode 4, Don’t Shoot Mommy, airing June 2, 2025, on Investigation Discovery.
Kate Ranta had previously secured a temporary restraining order against Maffei after an incident in which he became physically aggressive and locked her out of their bedroom while intoxicated and armed.
According to an NPR News interview report dated November 4, 2023, Ranta recalled hearing “what sounded like a gun chamber," with bullets being loaded, prompting her to flee with the help of police.
"He had passed me and went into our master bedroom, and I heard what sounded like a gun chamber," she stated.
Despite the confiscation of his firearms, Maffei was able to legally purchase a 9mm handgun shortly after, a weapon he later used in the attack.
On the day of the shooting, Ranta noticed her tire had been slashed. As she attempted to secure the apartment with her father, Maffei appeared and fired three rounds through the front door. He forced his way inside, shooting Ranta and her father. As quoted by the ABC News report dated June 7, 2024, during the incident, William pleaded,
“Don’t do it, Daddy. Don’t shoot Mommy,”
Though seriously wounded, both Kate and her father survived. A jury later convicted Maffei of attempted first-degree murder and other felony charges. He is now serving a 60-year sentence.
The lead-up to the shooting and failed protections
Kate Ranta met Maffei in 2007 and married him soon after. She gave birth to their son in 2008, but their relationship quickly turned abusive. According to the March for Our Lives report dated June 13, 2024, Ranta said that after a violent altercation in 2011, she sought legal protection.
However, even after the court removed several of Maffei’s firearms, he was still able to acquire another gun legally.
“He could go out the next day and legally buy another gun—which was exactly what he did,....He bought a 9mm Beretta, the one he later used to try to murder us,” Ranta added.
After separating from Maffei, Kate Ranta settled in Coral Springs, Florida. Although she believed she had escaped, Maffei found her. That led to the ambush that nearly killed her and left all three survivors, Kate, her father, and William, diagnosed with complex PTSD.
Where Kate Ranta is now
Following the shooting, Kate Ranta relocated to Massachusetts with her son, citing the state’s stricter gun safety laws as a key reason. As reported by CBS12 on October 3, 2024, she said,
“It shouldn’t have taken the attempted murder and almost the erasing of three generations of my family in order for the system to kick into place.”
Ranta now works as an advocate for gun reform and domestic violence prevention. She runs the Facebook page Survivor Inspired Speak Up – SISU and regularly speaks at public events, including on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court during oral arguments for United States v. Rahimi.
Kate Ranta also authored the book Killing Kate, which explores her personal journey and the identity transformation that followed her survival. She told CBS12,
“It’s also a killing of the old me and it also shows the process of the journey and the triumph that came out of it.”
Don’t Shoot Mommy explores her case in detail, highlighting the breakdowns that allowed a known abuser access to firearms. The episode aims to underscore the lasting effects of domestic violence and the urgent need for legal reforms.
Stay tuned for more updates.
