A Devon man who killed his wife inside a Main Line Wawa was convicted of first-degree murder

A Devon man who shot his ex-wife in the middle of a crowded Wawa in 2019 was convicted late Thursday of first-degree murder.

It took a Delaware County jury less than an hour to reach that verdict against Brian Kennedy, 37, who shot Stephanie Miller four times at point-blank range during what was supposed to be the weekly custody exchange of their son in Radnor. Kennedy had no reaction to the verdict as it was read before County Judge Richard Cappelli, but the news brought tears to the eyes of Miller’s family and friends, who had packed the courtroom during the three-day trial.

Despite the brazen, public nature of the shooting, which was witnessed by nearly 10 people and captured on the convenience store’s surveillance cameras, Kennedy’s attorney, Michael Dugan, said Kennedy did not have premeditated intent to kill and urged the jurors to find him guilty of voluntary manslaughter rather than murder.

In the days leading up to the shooting, Dugan said in his closing arguments Thursday, Kennedy was struggling with his mental health and “wasn’t all there.” He said Kennedy was upset about the couple’s child-custody arrangement and felt that Miller had been hostile to him since their separation in 2013.

“All he wanted to do was see his child,” Dugan said. “... This took a toll on Brian Kennedy, and he snapped.”

The killing, he said, was in the heat of passion after Miller told Kennedy he would never see his son again.

“He had been dealing with a lot of things over months, over years,” Dugan said. “On March 28, he reached a breaking point. He will pay for it, but it was not premeditated.”

But Assistant District Attorney Matt DeNucci told jurors the evidence clearly indicated that the crime was a carefully planned execution.

“This case is a textbook, slam dunk, law school example of first-degree murder,” he said.

Kennedy purchased the AR-15 used to kill Miller from a store in King of Prussia 12 days before the shooting, according to trial testimony, and he returned to the store the day before the murder to buy additional ammunition for the gun.

And an hour before shooting Miller, Kennedy searched online for instructions on how to use the specific brand of rifle that he had purchased, according to testimony from county detectives.

“You can’t take a life in this fashion, and then come into court and say ‘I was provoked by some intense passion,’” DeNucci said. “That didn’t happen here.”

Earlier Thursday, Kennedy took the stand and told jurors his ex-wife was abusive, an assertion DeNucci disputed.

Kennedy said the abuse began after he had an affair with a coworker five months after his son was born in 2012. Miller punched and attacked him during their marriage, and later threatened to take away his custody rights and never let him see his son. Miller also urged him to kill himself, he said.

“It was horrible. I didn’t want to go on,” Kennedy said. “The only thing keeping me going was the thought of my son.”

DeNucci cast doubt on Kennedy’s testimony. He pointed out that Kennedy had been convicted of assaulting Miller in 2013 as they drove home from a divorce mediation, and convicted of terroristic threats three years later, when, in the same Wawa where she died, he told her “Get that [expletive] life insurance policy before I kill you.”

» READ MORE: In Radnor Wawa, 30 seconds of terror: How a years-long custody battle escalated to murder

Kennedy, for his part, insisted that he bought the AR-15 for self-defense, saying he was fearful of Miller’s threats. On the day of the murder, he said, he had planned to use the gun to kill himself.

“I felt like I didn’t have any more options,” he said. “It came down to the point where either I’m going to be killed, or I’m going to end it to avoid the pain of whatever Stephanie meant for me.”

Kennedy left behind a letter, addressed to his son, explaining his actions.

“Your mother has nothing but hate for me,” he wrote. “I despise what I have to do, but I don’t see any other option. You can hate me for this. I already hate myself.”

That letter, the prosecutor told the jury, made clear that the shooting of Miller was premeditated.

“Brian did his level best to make sure Stephanie paid for ending their marriage,” DeNucci said. “... He made her pay over and over for years, and then he killed her.”