Michelle Lee Skidmore, a 35-year-old White woman, was killed on December 29, 2014, inside her home at 170 Greenwood Avenue in the Mink Shoals area of Kanawha County, West Virginia. The violence came to the attention of authorities when her teenage son, Jonathan Skidmore, managed to escape the house despite suffering multiple gunshot wounds. Covered in blood, he made his way to a neighboring residence and told the people there that both he and his mother had been shot next door.
The neighbors contacted Metro 911, bringing Kanawha County sheriff’s deputies and emergency medical personnel to the neighborhood.
Jonathan, who was 17 at the time, had sustained life-threatening injuries and was rushed to Charleston Area Medical Center’s General Division. Deputies entered the Skidmore residence and found Michelle inside. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators quickly identified Michelle’s brother, Glenn David Skidmore, as the suspect. Authorities obtained warrants accusing him of murder and malicious wounding and warned the public that he should be considered armed and dangerous.
The later court proceedings revealed how severe the attack had been. Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Maryclaire Akers said an autopsy conducted through the West Virginia Medical Examiner’s Office showed that Michelle had been shot five times in the head and trunk, including shots fired at close range to her head. Prosecutors said the firearm used was a. 45-caliber handgun that had been kept in the residence. Jonathan was also shot several times but survived. His ability to leave the house and seek help provided authorities with immediate information identifying his uncle as the alleged shooter.
After the shooting, Glenn Skidmore fled from the area. Authorities said he left in Michelle’s vehicle and took several firearms from the home. During the early morning hours of December 30, a Logan County sheriff’s deputy spotted the vehicle traveling south on U.S. 119 near Logan. Rather than immediately attempting a stop alone, the deputy followed the vehicle and waited for assistance. West Virginia State Police troopers and a Logan police officer responded, and Skidmore was stopped at approximately 5:00 a.m. State Police served the Kanawha County warrants and took him into custody.
The evidence recovered from Michelle’s vehicle strengthened the case against him. Prosecutors later said the. 45-caliber handgun identified as the murder weapon was inside, along with additional firearms that had been taken from the residence. Michelle’s credit cards were also found in the vehicle, accompanied by receipts showing that the cards had been used at a fast-food restaurant and another business after the shooting and before Skidmore’s arrest. Investigators had the vehicle towed back to Kanawha County so the potential evidence inside could be preserved and examined.
The criminal case expanded beyond the charges contained in the original arrest warrants. In January 2015, Glenn David Skidmore was among those indicted in Kanawha County, with charges that included murder, malicious wounding, attempted murder, grand larceny, and fraud involving an access device. The charges reflected not only Michelle’s killing and the shooting of Jonathan but also allegations surrounding the property, vehicle and financial items taken after the attack.
Skidmore was already a convicted felon. He previously had been convicted of embezzlement and received a prison sentence of one to ten years, with his discharge from that sentence occurring in September 2013. That prior felony eventually played a role in the resolution of the murder prosecution because prosecutors pursued a recidivist enhancement in connection with his new conviction.
The case did not ultimately go before a jury. On September 18, 2017, nearly three years after Michelle’s death, Glenn Skidmore appeared before Kanawha County Circuit Judge James Stucky and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. He also pleaded guilty to a second-offense recidivist charge by way of information. Under the plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed the charges involving attempted murder, malicious wounding, grand larceny and fraud.
Jonathan, who had recovered from his physical injuries, confronted his uncle during the sentencing hearing. He explained that he and his mother had been helping Glenn, allowing him to live with them without paying rent while trying to help him get back on his feet. Jonathan accused his uncle of taking advantage of their generosity and indicated that he believed money was behind what happened. The physical evidence presented by prosecutors included Michelle’s stolen vehicle, firearms taken from the house, her credit cards and receipts documenting their use after the killing. Glenn Skidmore apologized in court to his family and specifically to Jonathan for what he had done.
Judge Stucky sentenced Glenn Skidmore to life imprisonment with mercy for Michelle’s murder. Because of the recidivist conviction based on his earlier felony record, five years were added to the period he would otherwise have been required to serve before becoming eligible for parole. The resulting sentence left him eligible to seek parole after serving 20 years rather than guaranteeing his release at that point. His guilty plea and life sentence brought the prosecution to an end with Michelle’s brother formally accepting criminal responsibility for the killing.
Michelle had grown up in the Mink Shoals and Elk River area and graduated from Herbert Hoover High School in 1997. Her family remembered her as a caring and positive person devoted to raising Jonathan. What began on Greenwood Avenue as a family helping a relative ended with Michelle dead, her son critically wounded, and the brother they had been assisting fleeing with property from their home before his capture the following morning. Jonathan survived the shooting, while Glenn Skidmore ultimately received a life sentence for taking his sister’s life.
