St. Cloud Murder Trial Struck for Possible Mental Illness Defense

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- A Stearns County judge has struck the jury trial of a St. Cloud man accused of murdering a woman. The matter will be reset to a later date.

According to the Stearns County Attorney's Office, new information came to light so the judge ordered a Rule 20.02 examination related to a possible mental illness defense in the case of Daniel Kenning.

Kenning is accused of strangling 45-year-old Jennifer Moy in 2018. He is charged with 1st and 2nd-degree murder. Jury selection had begun this week.

Kenning has undergone multiple mental competency evaluations ahead of the charges and was found competent in December of 2024.

According to the complaint, Kenning walked into the St. Cloud Police Department in September 2018 and told officers he had just killed someone. Officers responded to Kenning's house at 1121 10th Avenue North and found the Blaine woman dead inside.

Records show Kenning picked up Moy the night before and drove her back to his house where he handcuffed her to a table, tied up her legs, then intentionally strangled her until she died.

Kenning allegedly told authorities God had told him he needed to kill someone and that he would be able to resurrect them.

An autopsy indicated Moy died of asphyxiation due to probable strangulation and that the manner of death was a homicide.

No new trial date has been scheduled.