On the evening of April 3, 2022, a long-simmering neighborhood dispute in Three Springs, Pennsylvania, erupted into a fatal act of violence that claimed the life of 40-year-old Timothy E. Skipper Jr. The male victim was a husband and father of two young sons who had repeatedly raised concerns about his neighbor's reckless driving on their shared private road.
These concerns were tragically validated when a final confrontation over speeding led to his untimely death.
The conflict centered around the driving habits of Cole J. Campbell, Skipper's 30-year-old neighbor. For some time, residents of Springhill Drive had been at odds with Campbell over his high-speed driving on the road, an issue Skipper had verbally addressed with him on several occasions due to concerns for the safety of his children who often played outside. The situation escalated on that Sunday evening as Skipper and his wife were unloading groceries. Campbell reportedly sped past their home, prompting Skipper to go to Campbell's residence to inform him of his intention to install speed bumps. This was the last time his wife saw him alive.
At Campbell's home, the verbal altercation turned physical and deadly. Surveillance footage from Campbell's own security cameras captured the tragic sequence of events. The video showed an argument at the front door, during which Campbell brandished an AR-15 rifle. Skipper grabbed the barrel of the weapon, leading to a struggle that moved inside the house. During the scuffle, Skipper was shot three times – in the shin, forearm, and a fatal wound to the chest. Despite the efforts of neighbors and family who performed CPR, Skipper succumbed to his injuries in the back of an ambulance.
Law enforcement was called to the scene, and a person of interest was initially taken into custody and later released. However, the investigation, aided by Campbell's own surveillance footage, quickly led back to him. Cole J. Campbell was subsequently arrested and charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, and other related offenses. He claimed self-defense, asserting that he feared for his life.
In October 2023, a jury found Campbell not guilty of murder but convicted him of voluntary manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault. The judge sentenced him to a total of 17 to 40 years in prison. During sentencing, the judge noted Campbell's lack of remorse and his tendency to blame the victim. An appeal of the conviction and sentence was later filed by Campbell's attorney, with the intention of taking the case to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The Superior Court upheld the sentence in June 2025.
