'I begged him, don't shoot me': Man murdered wife for telling him to turn off Monday Night Football, then turned gun to stepdaughter, cops say
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Inset: Jason Kenney (Polk County Sheriff”s Office). Background: Lemon Avenue in Lakeland, Florida, where Kenney allegedly shot his wife and stepdaughter (Google Maps).

Authorities in Florida are delving into a tragic case of murder-suicide following a domestic dispute, which also left a 13-year-old girl injured. The incident unfolded when a disagreement erupted after the suspect’s wife requested that he switch off the Monday Night Football game, according to police reports.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office reported that deputies were dispatched shortly before 11 p.m. on Monday in response to a shooting call on Lemon Avenue in Lakeland. A 12-year-old boy had fled to a neighbor’s home, seeking assistance as his mother, Crystal Kenney, and stepfather, 47-year-old Jason Kenney, were embroiled in a heated argument. While he was running for help, he reportedly heard gunfire.

Upon arriving at the scene, deputies discovered Crystal Kenney deceased and her 13-year-old daughter with gunshot injuries to her face and shoulder. A 1-year-old girl was also present but was unharmed. Authorities confirmed Crystal Kenney’s death, while the wounded teenager remains in critical yet stable condition at a local hospital.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, speaking at a press conference, revealed that the bullet had entered the 13-year-old’s face at the bridge of her nose, traveled upward, and exited through the top of her head. Despite the severity of her injuries, the sheriff noted that the girl is alert and communicating.

Judd said the girl is alert and talking.

“That’s a Christmas miracle,” Judd said.

Deputies identified Jason Kenney as the suspect and learned he fled the scene in his truck. As he drove, he called his sister in upstate New York and said “I did something terrible and this is the last time you’ll ever talk to me,” according to Judd. “You’ll see me on the news, but I am not going to jail. I’m not going to jail for the rest of my life.”

He drove to his father’s house in nearby Lake Wales and hid in a shed, Judd said. Deputies were trying to coax him out when they heard a gunshot. They entered the shed where they found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

An investigation revealed the suspect became enraged at his wife when she suggested changing the channel toward the end of the Monday Night Football game. He pulled out a gun and shot her in the head, Judd said.

Then the suspect turned his sights on his stepdaughter.

“She said, ‘I begged him, don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me,’ and he shot me anyway,” the girl told detectives.

Investigators also found an undated letter Crystal Kenney wrote to her husband, where she told him she was concerned about his drug and alcohol use.

Judd called the shooting “horrific,” especially considering the time of year.

“He just absolutely destroyed a family, literally, and the mental health of two children without their mama and an infant that will grow up without a mother and a father three days before Christmas,” he said.

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