Stines
Last
year,
Kentucky
District
Judge
Kevin
D.
Mullins
was
shot
dead
in
his
chambers.
Shortly
after
the
shots
were
fired,
then-Sheriff
Mickey
Stines
walked
out
of
chambers,
surrendered
to
the
police
and
explained
that
“They’re
trying
to
kidnap
my
wife
and
kid.”
He’s
understandably
been
the
top
suspect
for
the
murder
ever
since.
The
local
Kentucky
killing
made
national
waves
for
a
few
reasons.
One,
you
rarely
hear
of
sheriffs
shooting
judges.
Second,
the
judge
was
accused
of
running
a
sex
ring
out
of
his
courthouse
where
women
were
coerced
in
to
having
sex
to
get
reduced
sentences.
Stines
pleaded
not
guilty
to
the
murder
of
a
public
official.
Before
the
trial
starts,
he
and
his
legal
team
are
trying
to
get
the
death
penalty
off
the
table.
WCYB
has
coverage:
A
motion
has
been
filed
by
the
defense
for
former
Letcher
County
Sheriff
Shawn
“Mickey”
Stines
in
hopes
of
avoiding
the
death
penalty…In
the
court
filing,
the
defense
wants
a
hearing
to
determine
if
Stines
has
a
serious
intellectual
disability
or
serious
mental
illness.
You’ve
gotta
respect
due
process
and
there’s
no
shame
in
attorneys
going
for
any
colorable
argument
that
could
help
their
client,
but
shouldn’t
any
serious
intellectual
disabilities
or
mental
illnesses
have
been
sussed
out
during
his
time
as
a
sheriff?
Especially
if
said
conditions
made
him
prone
to,
I
don’t
know,
allegedly
shooting
people
dead
in
broad
daylight?
Maybe
they
just
do
things
differently
in
Kentucky.
Former
Kentucky
Sheriff
Accused
Of
Killing
Judge
Wants
Hearing
To
Avoid
Death
Penalty
[WCYB]
Earlier:
Slain
Judge
Accused
Of
‘Running
A
Brothel
Out
Of
That
Courtroom’
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s
.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
is
learning
to
swim, is
interested
in
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected]
and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.