Robert Tuck III, aged 33, tragically lost his life on February 15, 2019, in Oakland, California. The incident occurred at a homeless camp located on the 2500 block of Wood Street in West Oakland. The fatal shooting was captured on video by a surveillance camera in the area. According to police reports, Tuck and the shooter, Frank Kennedy, did not know each other prior to the incident. The two men got into an argument that escalated, leading to Kennedy fatally shooting Tuck.
Following the shooting, Kennedy attempted to alter his appearance by cutting his dreadlocks, which he then placed in a bag. Despite his efforts to disguise himself, Kennedy was arrested at the same homeless camp where the shooting took place. He was found inside the tent where he lived when police served a search warrant. Kennedy has been held at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin since his arrest.
In the legal proceedings that followed, Frank Kennedy, aged 25 at the time, accepted a plea deal with Alameda County prosecutors. He pleaded no contest to manslaughter and was sentenced to 18 years in state prison. This plea deal was formalized nearly two years after the incident, during a court hearing on February 18, 2021. As part of the agreement, prosecutors dismissed the murder and gun charges against Kennedy. The plea deal brought some closure to the case, although the tragic loss of Robert Tuck III continues to resonate with those who knew him.
