At a Glance
- Crystal Kenney, 38, was shot dead by her husband after refusing to switch from Percy Jackson to Monday Night Football
- Her 13-year-old daughter survived a bullet to the face after begging for her life
- Crystal sent her 12-year-old son next door to call 911, saving his life and indirectly rescuing his sister
- Why it matters: The murder-suicide exposes how quickly domestic disputes can turn lethal when firearms are present
A Florida mother died protecting her three children after her husband shot her and their teenage daughter in a dispute over television choices, according to News Of Losangeles.
Crystal Kenney, 38, had been watching Percy Jackson when Jason Kenney demanded she switch to the fourth quarter of Monday Night Football. The argument escalated into a shooting that left Crystal dead, their daughter critically wounded, and Jason dead by suicide hours later.
The Argument That Turned Fatal
The couple’s disagreement began shortly before midnight in their Polk County home. Jason had been watching the San Francisco 49ers in his shed before coming inside to watch the game’s conclusion.
Crystal refused to change the channel, according to Sheriff Grady Judd. Their 13-year-old daughter told Inside Edition: “She wouldn’t change the channel to football because she wanted to watch another episode of Percy Jackson.”
The fight intensified rapidly. Crystal recognized the danger and acted to protect her children.
A Mother’s Final Heroic Act
With violence escalating, Crystal instructed her 12-year-old son to run next door for help. The boy escaped unharmed because he wasn’t in the house when Jason began shooting.
Crystal’s sister Stephanie Roure told USA Today: “My sister died a hero for protecting her children and getting my nephew out of the house to make the 911 call.”
The daughter remained inside and witnessed her stepfather shoot her mother. Jason then turned the gun on the teenager despite her desperate pleas.
“I begged him, ‘Don’t shoot me, don’t shoot me,'” the girl told Inside Edition.
Jason shot her in the shoulder first, then in the face at close range.
A Christmas Miracle
The bullet struck the girl on the bridge of her nose, traveled upward and exited through the top of her head. Sheriff Judd called her survival “a Christmas miracle.”
The couple’s infant child, present in the same bedroom, escaped unharmed. All three children are now recovering with their maternal grandmother.
“She saved their lives and by doing so my nephew saved his sister’s life, and thank God the baby was untouched,” Stephanie said.
The Aftermath
After the shooting, Jason fled to his late father’s home where he barricaded himself in a shed. In his final phone conversation with his sister, he admitted doing “something very, very bad” and said “the next time you see me will be on the news,” according to Sheriff Judd.
Police surrounded the property. Jason died by suicide before they could apprehend him.
“He absolutely destroyed a family,” Judd said.
Remembering Crystal
Friends and family remember Crystal as a devoted mother who prioritized her children above everything else.
“Her children were her world. She worked hard for them, to provide for them. She protected them,” Stephanie told USA Today. “They came first before anything.”
A GoFundMe campaign has been established to support the three children as they begin life without their mother. The 13-year-old continues her remarkable recovery from the shooting.
Key Takeaways
- Domestic disputes can escalate to violence in minutes when firearms are accessible
- Crystal Kenney’s quick thinking saved two of her three children from the shooting
- The surviving daughter’s recovery is considered miraculous given her injuries
- All three children are now being cared for by their maternal grandmother
