A Kansas City mother and son were sentenced to 10 years in prison for their roles in two nonfatal shootings in Swope Park on Father’s Day 2023.
Kippie R. House, 54, and Darryel L. Pennington, 32, both pleaded guilty to felony possession of a firearm. As part of a plea deal, House also admitted to federal prosecutors that she and Pennington were involved in the shootings.
Pennington was sentenced to 10 years in prison on June 17, according to U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore’s office, and House received the same sentence plus one month on June 20. Neither will be eligible for parole.
The mother and son were charged as co-defendants in Missouri Western District Court. The shootings stemmed from a confrontation with the family of House’s ex-boyfriend, according to a Wednesday news release from Moore’s office.
The shootings took place in full view of several people in the busy park and were also captured on video. According to Moore’s office, several families gathered for Father’s Day on the afternoon of June 18, 2023, with people gathered in lawn chairs, picnic pavilions and bounce houses.
House entered the park first, alone, with a gun and confronted a female relative of her ex-boyfriend, according to Moore’s office and court documents. After a physical confrontation, she began shooting at the woman.
The woman ran away and grabbed her own gun from a parked car, leading to a gunfight in the parking lot, according to Moore’s office and court documents.
House returned to the park with Pennington an hour later and they engaged in a drive-by shooting with the family of House’s ex-boyfriend, according to Moore’s office. Pennington fired a gun from the passenger seat and was shot in the leg when at least two people fired back at the car, court documents show.
House took Pennington to Research Hospital, where the mother and son were met by a Kansas City police officer. The case against House and Pennington was investigated by the Kansas City Police Department; officers noticed multiple bullet holes in House’s car when they spoke to her in the hospital parking lot.
Previous charges against House in Kansas and Missouri include theft and receiving stolen property, according to court documents. At least one of the guns involved in the shooting had previously been reported stolen, according to Moore’s office.
Previous charges against Pennington in both states include unlawful use of a weapon, as well as misdemeanor drug possession, drug trafficking and driving under the influence, court records show.
