In the quiet community of Evington, Virginia, an act of kindness led to a tragic and violent end for Robin L. Chenault, a 65-year-old Caucasian woman. On October 6, 2018, her life was cut short in an act of retaliation that also left her husband, Dale, critically injured. The events that unfolded that day were set in motion by her compassionate decision to help a neighbor in need.
The day before the fatal incident, Tony Allen Kidd had been released on bond after being arrested for assault and battery against his girlfriend, Stephanie McKenna. Robin Chenault, in a gesture of support, had assisted McKenna in moving out of the residence she shared with Kidd. This act of neighborly assistance enraged Kidd, who then targeted the Chenaults in a violent rampage.
On that Saturday, deputies performing a welfare check at the Chenaults' home on Lucinda Drive discovered a horrific scene. Robin Chenault was found deceased from multiple gunshot wounds, and her husband was gravely wounded. The investigation quickly pointed to Tony Allen Kidd as the perpetrator. After fleeing the scene of the shooting, Kidd led police on a chase that ended in a shootout with Lynchburg police, after which he was taken into custody.
The legal proceedings that followed brought the full scope of Kidd's violent actions to light. Initially, he was charged with second-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a murder. However, given the severity of the crime, the prosecution sought to elevate the charges to capital murder. In July 2019, Tony Kidd pleaded guilty to capital murder. As part of a plea agreement, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In addition to the murder charge, he received two more life sentences for two counts of robbery against the Chenaults, as well as additional time for statutory burglary, malicious wounding, and firearm charges, totaling three consecutive life sentences plus 56 years. This sentence was separate from a 50-year sentence he was already serving for the attempted capital murder of five police officers during the chase that led to his capture.
