Katherine Ann Fleming, a 65-year-old White/Caucasian woman, was a lifelong resident of Hampton, Virginia, where she worked for the Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles. A mother to two daughters and a grandmother to two grandchildren, her life was tragically cut short on the evening of July 10, 2014.
On that Thursday evening, at approximately 6:30 p.m., Fleming was standing in her driveway when she was fatally shot. Less than an hour later, she was pronounced dead at a local hospital. The investigation into her death led police to her neighbor of 30 years, 84-year-old David Junior Priddy. Priddy was subsequently arrested and charged with her murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
While the motive for the shooting was not publicly disclosed by authorities, the legal proceedings against Priddy took an unexpected turn. During the investigation, he was found to be mentally incompetent to stand trial. Court documents revealed that Priddy appeared very disconnected during his evaluation, leaving it unclear whether he was suffering from dementia or paranoia. As a result, he was ordered to a psychiatric hospital for inpatient treatment to determine if his competency could be restored. His mental state was scheduled to be re-evaluated after six months to decide if he could then stand trial for the death of his longtime neighbor.
