Witness says he saw man shoot 2 women

Kenneth Robinson says he was with Charles Cunningham on the night Jessica Serna and Heidi Shook were killed.

SPRINGFIELD — Charles Cunningham was the shooter in the double murder of two women in 2008, a witness said in testimony Wednesday, April 28.

Cunningham, 39, is standing trial in Clark County Common Pleas court on charges of aggravated murder, felony murder, felonious assault, having weapons under disability and tampering with evidence.

He is accused in the shooting deaths of Jessica Serna, 27, and Heidi Shook, 28, in October 2008.

Prosecution witness Kenneth Robinson testified that he was with Cunningham on the night of the murder and saw the defendant do the shooting.

Robinson said he was riding in Cunningham’s vehicle as they chased Shook and Serna’s vehicle to North Street, where the shooting occurred, and that the defendant exited the car “in a rage.”

“He shot Jessica first, then started shooting Heidi,” said Robinson.

Defense attorney William Merrell questioned Robinson about the discrepancies between his statements to police and court testimony Wednesday.

Robinson didn’t report what he saw to authorities until investigators sought him out, Merrell argued.

“There was a substantial period of time when you didn’t go to the police on your own,” Merrell said in his cross-examination.

Serna and Shook were found shot to death on North Street just east of Water Street shortly before 3 a.m. Oct. 4, 2008.

Shook was pronounced dead at the scene; Serna died at Miami Valley Hospital a day later.

If convicted on all charges, Cunningham could face the death penalty.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0360 or vlough@coxohio.com.

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