Murder or Justice?
Murder or Vigilante Justice?:
This story is going to be on 20/20 in November.
Kimberly Cunningham shot her daughter’s uncle, Coy Hundley, to death when she learned that he had raped her 9-year-old daughter.
Kimberly got into her car and drove to the tool company where Hundley worked. She called him out into the parking lot. Cunningham said that she was praying he would deny the rape. Instead, she said Hundley, 39, laughed at her.
“What are you going to do about it?” he allegedly said.
Kimberly shot him five times, reloaded the weapon and fired five more rounds, killing him.
At her first trial she was acquitted of first degree murder but deadlocked on 2nd degree murder charges so a retrial was ordered.
On the second trial she was again acquitted of first degree murder but was convicted of voluntary manslaughter.
Now here’s what I want you to do. Please read the entire article I linked to and then answer these two questions for me.
1. If you were Kimberly Cunningham what would you have done if you found out your daughter was raped? Would you have killed him, let the law do it’s job, or something else?
2. If you were on the jury what would you have convicted her of?
While I don’t condone illegal activity in any way shape or form if it was my daughter I would have beat the crap out of the guy to the point where he would never forget it then I’d turn bith myself and him into the cops. If I was on the jury I would have convicted her of second degree murder only for the fact that she reloaded her gun.
Now think about this realistically please and don’t just post knee jerk reactions. I look forward to your responses.
Tags: child-rape, Coy-Hundley, Hell hath no fury, Kimberly-Cunningham, shootingPOSTED IN: Hell hath no fury
12 opinions for Murder or Justice?
jade
Oct 7, 2007 at 7:02 am
i’ve seen this one on “Snapped” several times.
realistically, yes, because she reloaded the gun, she should have to serve some time. i think voluntary manslaughter was fair.
the mother in me, however, says she should have reloaded a couple of more times to make sure the bastard was really good and dead.
Belinda
Oct 8, 2007 at 1:00 am
As a mother of two children I can completely see why she took the gun to confront him. I however believe that death is a far too easy escape for someone who has done something like this. If I was the mother I would have shot his genitals 5x and then turned him and myself in. that way he will have maximum amount of pain and still get to go to prison where others can inflict multiple amount of pain on him for being a child rapist.
D.P.
Oct 9, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Belinda, I was thinking the same thing! Death was too good for this disgusting POS. While reading the article it occurred to me that Coy was most likely abusing his own children as well, which is where his oldest son picked up the behaviour. As a mother, I can totally empathize with Kimberly Cunningham. I’m not one to condone vigilante justice, but this family was harassed and victimized for a long time by this guy without any let up. He was a bully who thought he could do whatever he wanted. I am proud of the one juror who held out against the first degree murder charge. This was definitely not first degree murder in my opinion. Voluntary manslaughter seems fair to me and I’m glad she will out of prison in a few months to heal with her kids.
Danielle
Oct 9, 2007 at 3:01 pm
mmmm.. I would’a kidded ‘em too!
Wendy
Oct 9, 2007 at 7:31 pm
Obviously, I don’t think she was in her right mind. It’s okay to say as an observer that the right course of action is to wait for the law to handle it– the law didn’t handle it.
Of course, if I were in her shoes, I would have probably done something equally regrettable. It’s sad that her daughter is going without a mom right now when she so desperately needs one.
If I were on the jury, I think I would have voted voluntary manslaughter. I don’t think reloading the gun enters into it, he would have probably been dead with the first bullets so at that point it might as well be mutilating a corpse.
SeoulGirl
Oct 11, 2007 at 8:45 am
Wow. Three things:
1. If I was Kimberly I would have shot him too. I think having your 9yr.old daughter raped/sodomized, son sexually assaulted, and then bullied is quite a button pusher in my book. Add to that a woman/child abuser that has a family/friends that supports and threatens the victims and mother to keep her mouth shut….my boiling point would be way over the limit. This woman must have felt so helpless, even after reporting the molestation by the cousin. Then his friends/family pretty much tells her to suck wind or they will make sure no one can find her body….
Hundley would have probably only did a year and got out, raped her kids again, plus anyone else’s he was able to touch.
2. I would have convicted her of voluntary manslaughter. Though reloading does show intent…I would have let it slide bc it was in a moment of passion for her poor children being sexually abused by this CRACKHEAD family….I have NO COMPASSION, ZERO, ZIP, NADA….for child abusers.
3. I actually received much gratification from the fact that this woman shot this paedophile rapist. Saved the taxpayers money and freed up a spot in jail. Belinda receives points for her creative use of imagery in depicting Hundley’s demise.
cindy
Oct 15, 2007 at 9:05 pm
He got what he deserved and she shouldn’t serve even one minute in jail. She did us all a favor.
Elizabeth
Oct 17, 2007 at 4:22 pm
I don’t believe our justice system doles our sufficient punishment for predators like this guy. That child will be traumatized for life. I agree with others who have commented that death is too good for him and I hate the fact that the girls mother will be punished for protecting her child. I would not be selected for that jury because I think she should be able to plead self-defense and not be convicted of anything at all. I might have paid someone to cut off his man parts so he would never be able to rape a child again, but now he’s gone and the world is a better place.
Steph
Dec 19, 2007 at 10:56 pm
I would have done the same thing and it would probably have been planned to a t. i’m so absolutely disgusted with perverts of both sexes that i just pray that there is a special place in hell for them. and if my child were a victim, i would gladly send the deserving sicko there myself.
geronimo
Apr 4, 2008 at 5:11 pm
i think she should have enticed him into her bed room ,and then cut off pecker,balls. sent his sorry ass to prison where hje could have been screwd so many times evvvry day,he could have really payed.believe me i know,i helped make sorry ass child molesters live and not live either.really enjoyable;;;;;;….. ask anyone thats been there how pleasent a fffuuuuccckkk—- child molesaters life really is?
J.R.
May 25, 2008 at 7:33 pm
As a single father of a little girl, I can say without any hesitation that if anyone lays a hand on my daughter….I will at that point become a vigilante.
If it were anything as horrible as what Coy Hundley did…the only thing I would have done differently, I would have killed him with my hands while he was looking into my eyes…I would be enjoying every minute of watching him slowly die by my hand
Waterboarding would have been nothing compared to the torture I would have put him through first…out in one of our hidden valley’s here in East Tennessee
Gemini
May 25, 2008 at 8:47 pm
I remember this case, and I was upset the mother Kimberly had to do ANY time in jail at all. This man likely (had he lived) would have done very little time in jail and then possibly gone on to molest/rape even more innocent children. He messed with the wrong mother and she put him where he belongs-6 Ft under.
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