Florida couple’s deadly night ends in tragedy, authorities say
A brutal shooting in Lakeland, Florida, left Crystal Kenney dead, her 13‑year‑old daughter badly wounded, and her husband, Jason Kenney, who later took his own life. Investigators recovered a heartfelt note from Kenney’s home, in which Crystal accused him of “drunk” and “cocaine” use and urged him to seek “God.”
Police responded to the Kenney residence after a call came in on Monday night. When they arrived, they found Crystal still on the floor with a fatal gunshot wound. Her daughter, who had sustained injuries to the face and shoulder, was taken to a nearby hospital. The note—undated but clearly left for anyone to read—was discovered in a place that was easily visible to anyone entering the house, Sheriff Grady Judd told reporters.
“We don’t know whether she wrote it that night or if it had been in the house for some time,” Judd said. “That’s a piece we’re still looking at as part of the investigation.”
Family members who spoke with the sheriff indicated that Kenney had a history of physical abuse toward Crystal, although no domestic‑violence calls had ever been received from the home. “It seems this had been going on for a while,” Judd recalled. “The other relative said, ‘He’s been beating on her for a while’.”
The sheriff described the situation as “not surprising, if a woman protects her husband.” Kenney had no prior criminal record according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
Following the shooting, Kenney drove to his father’s former house in Lake Wales. Police secured the property and found him at the scene, where he had shot himself in the head inside a shed.
“If he felt that way and hadn’t made the choices he did, he could have taken himself out without hurting those two people,” Judd said.
The 13‑year‑old was transported to a hospital for treatment and is anticipated to recover, a outcome the sheriff referred to as a “Christmas miracle.” She reportedly pleaded with her father, “don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me,” before the fatal shot was fired.
Kenney’s other step‑child, a 12‑year‑old, fled to a neighboring home for help after Crystal ordered him to call 911. He was unharmed, as was the couple’s one‑year‑old daughter, who was found sleeping peacefully in her crib.
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