Nobody can say the assassination of District Judge Kevin Mullins wasn’t an inside job. He was executed by a Kentucky sheriff, Shawn M. Stines, “whose role made him responsible for judges’ personal security.” The shooting happened “inside the judge’s chambers.”
Judge killed by sheriff
Nobody at the Letcher County courthouse imagined Sheriff Stines would kill Judge Kevin Mullins. Especially, not in the judge’s own chambers. He wasn’t just a trusted public official, Stines served as head of security for the courthouse, specifically entrusted with the protection of all the judges.
54-year-old Mullins was pronounced dead around 3 p.m. Thursday of gunshot wounds.
Kentucky State Police Trooper Matt Gayheart held a press conference to inform the Whitesburg public what they know. It isn’t much.
The trooper confirmed “Letcher County Sheriff Shawn M. Stines, 43, — whose role made him responsible for judges’ personal security — shot Mullins after an argument inside the judge’s chambers.” The judge was unresponsive when they arrived.
They did a preliminary investigation and that’s as far as it went. “Stines is now facing a first-degree murder charge.” It’s not clear if the sheriff has obtained legal counsel.
After shooting the judge, Stines remained at the scene and is cooperating fully. “Stines turned himself in after the shooting and was arrested at the scene without incident on Thursday.”
Cooperating with authorities
Sheriff Stines “is cooperating with authorities.” It’s nice to see he’s accepting responsibility for his actions and not making anyone hunt him down or causing any other needless drama. After eight years on the job it’s “unclear who will take over as the county sheriff.”
There’s no dispute he killed the judge but even so, “there are cameras inside the building and all witnesses will be interviewed.”
“This community is small in nature, and we’re all shook,” Trooper Gayheart relates.
While nobody has any official idea as to why the Sheriff murdered a judge, rumors suggest it involved a dispute of a personal nature. Perhaps a love triangle. All that is known is that the two men had words before the argument ended in gunfire.
The state is still reeling from the effects of a high profile mass shooting. Southeast Kentucky “was rocked by a shooting at an interstate that wounded five people in Laurel County. And just three days ago, a Russell County deputy was killed in the line of duty.” Trooper Gayheart doesn’t like to hear that. “There is far too much violence in this world, and I pray there is a path to a better tomorrow.”
Nobody else was inside the private chamber of the judge when Mullins was shot. Other people were in the building but “no other injuries were reported. There’s no threat to the public.” The sheriff’s arraignment has been postponed because “arraignments for crimes committed in Letcher County would normally be handled by Mullins.“
