Background: The neighborhood in Louisville, Ky., where the alleged shooting took place on Dec. 28 (Google Maps). Inset: Kenneth Beals (Louisville Metropolitan Detention Center).

The incident unfolded when police were called to the University of Louisville Hospital’s emergency room, where a woman had arrived with a gunshot wound. She recounted to officers from the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department that the altercation began after she questioned Beals about consuming the snacks intended for her kids.

In a chilling twist, Beals reportedly admitted to eating the snacks, telling the woman, “Yes, I ate your snack, and it was good,” before allegedly brandishing a handgun and firing at her. Witnesses at the scene corroborated the woman’s account, identifying Beals as the shooter.

Fortunately, the woman’s injuries were not life-threatening, and she received medical treatment for the gunshot wound to her left arm. Beals was subsequently arrested, marking an unsettling conclusion to a dispute that escalated from a seemingly trivial matter to a criminal act.

Police said the woman was treated for a non-life-threatening injury to her left arm. Beals was identified as the alleged shooter by the woman and witnesses who were at the home where the incident took place.

According to the report, Beals was caught eating the snacks by the alleged victim”s aunt, who told her niece that Beals was eating the food the woman brought for her children. The aunt left the home, and the woman ran into Beals as he was leaving. The confrontation over the snacks occurred as the two crossed paths.

The woman drove herself to the hospital at 7:03 p.m. on Sunday.

Beals was charged with second-degree assault and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. He is currently in custody at the Louisville Metropolitan Detention Center, where he is being held on $5,000 bond. Local Fox affiliate WDRB reported that Beals was arraigned on Monday and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 6, 2026.