California Principal to Be Arraigned for Allegedly Killing Husband
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Hemera/Thinkstock(BAKERSFIELD, Calif.) — A California elementary school principal accused of fatally shooting her husband is expected to be arraigned on Tuesday.
Leslie Jenea Chance, 46, a principal at Bakersfield’s Fairview Elementary, was arrested Thursday after police say she shot her husband of 17 years and dumped his body. Todd Chance, 45, was found on Aug. 25 near an almond orchard in Bakersfield with multiple gunshot wounds.
Lisa Ramos has been friends with Jenea Chance for seven years and they worked together for the parent teacher organization at Fairview Elementary.
“They always seemed to get along good, he was always in a good mood, she was in a good mood. They communicated well together,” Ramos said.
Ramos can’t believe the principal could hurt anyone especially since she said she never heard Jenea Chance raise her voice.
“I didn’t believe it. She’s really quiet,” Ramos said. “…She just doesn’t fit that bill at all.”
The Chances have two daughters and Todd helped raise Leslie’s daughter, 23-year-old Jessica Bullman, from a previous marriage.
“He was the best guy, the best husband, the best dad. He’s been in my life since I was 4. He was my dad and he was everything,” Bullman told The Bakersfield Californian newspaper.
As students return to Fairview Elementary Tuesday morning after the Labor Day weekend, school officials say they’re prepared for a tough day.
“We need to educate students. That’s what we’re here for, that’s what we’ll do,” Greenfield Union School District Assistant Superintendent Ken Chichester said.
Jenea Chance, who has been principal since 2006, is expected to be arraigned on first degree murder charges. Investigators claim they have the murder weapon, but they don’t appear to have a motive.
Farm workers discovered Todd Chance’s body and police later found his Ford Mustang at an intersection 20 miles away.
“We believe she abandoned the vehicle and then walked to another area and was able to make her way back to their home,” Kern County Sheriff’s spokesman Ray Pruitt said.
ABC News has been unsuccessful in reaching Jenea Chance. It’s unclear if she has a lawyer.
Todd Chance will be buried on Wednesday.
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