After a two-day trial with 90 pieces of evidence, eight state witnesses, three expert witnesses and two hours of jury deliberation, a 12-person jury found Jude Rod Pennington guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Travis Allon Sinard, 39, Hood Dr.
“By God, I shot him, and I hope that bastard dies,” Pennington, 45, Ryan Rd., said to Cumberland County Sheriff’s Deputy Lucas Turner after police found him in his truck bleeding from gunshot wounds, according to Cumberland County Sheriff’s Deputy Charles Justice’s police body camera. Turner is now a sheriff’s investigator. Justice is a former deputy.
In the early morning hours of Nov. 17, 2019, Pennington, in a white Dodge truck, began ramming his ex-wife’s blue Nissan Maxima at Colby Circle in Ashmore Estates. What started as a domestic issue soon rose to a fatal gunfight.
The evidence presented showed that Pennington was ramming his ex-wife’s vehicle. There was damage to the rear bumper, a busted tail light and a flat tire.
Pennington’s ex-wife called 911 to report the vandalism to her vehicle.
According to Turner’s statement, Pennington told him that he began ramming his ex-wife’s car in hopes of getting Sinard out of Pennington’s ex-wife’s house. When Sinard did not exit the residence, Pennington left the property of his ex-wife on Colby Circle.
According to the 911 calls, Pennington returned almost 11 minutes later.
Based on the direct evidence presented by witnesses (Turner, Justice and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Agent Jacob Boswell) while Pennington was not present, Sinard exited the residence, opened the door of his tow truck, which was backed into Pennington’s ex-wife’s gravel driveway, and turned on the tow truck and headlights.
When Pennington returned, he had his .22 rifle equipped with a scope.
According to doorbell camera footage and the shell casings found at the crime scene, Pennington fired two shots at Sinard.
Sinard also had a weapon, a .45 handgun. Sinard then fired four times. Pennington fired back 11 times.
Pennington went back to his car and called 911 for medical assistance, according to audio evidence on the 911. Pennington suffered from at least two bullet wounds: one in his right arm and one in his upper right leg.
Turner said when he found Pennington, unaware of the shooting, he administered first aid and placed a tourniquet on Pennington’s arm to slow the bleeding.
According to Justice’s police body camera, Pennington gave his utterance to the police about what happened. He said he had been shot and thought he “was going to bleed to death.”
After he made his comment and received first aid, Pennington told the police about Sinard lying in the front yard.
Turner said he left Pennington with other officers and went to assist Sinard. When defense attorney Randal Boston asked Turner about the state of Sinard in cross-examination, Turner said, “He [Sinard] appeared to be dying.”
Sinard died with six bullet wounds in his body. According to Medical Examiner Dr. William Oliver, an expert in forensic pathology, Sinard’s manner of death was ruled homicide.
Sinard had a bullet in his lower right back, three in his right arm, one that entered the body on the right and landed in the upper left thigh and one in his right upper forehead. The bullet that entered his head was the one that ultimately led to his death, according to Oliver.
In Oliver’s report, he wrote that the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds. Sinard died Nov. 18, 2019, at a regional trauma center.
According to the entrance wounds in the autopsy report, the bullet holes found on the exterior of the residence and where police found Sinard lying in the front yard, investigators concluded Sinard tried to run parallel from the tow truck into the front yard.
Pennington was indicted Feb. 22, 2021. During this time, there was a delay in the process due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Pennington is facing a class A felony as a Range I offender, which could carry a sentence to serve in prison for 15 to 60 years at 30 %. Judge Gary McKenzie revoked the bond for Pennington, and he was immediately taken into custody.
Pennington will have a sentencing hearing Oct. 21 at the Justice Center in Crossville.