Kentucky - Judge killed, sheriff arrested in Letcher County courthouse shooting - Sep. 19, 2024

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mewmew said:
“It also says Sheriff Stines did not “reasonably respond” to reports or suspicions.”

So are they implying he had an unreasonable response? Interesting that the alleged situation was happening in Judge Mullins chambers….I wonder if this will tie in somehow.

JMO
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I disagree. The plaintiff named the Sheriff in their civil lawsuit -- alleging the Sheriff did not "reasonably respond to reports or suspicions" about the subject deputy sheriff (Fields) who allegedly harmed the plaintiff. The deputy was never criminally charged in this matter.

To be clear, this is an incident dating back to 2022, where the Sheriff was also named as a defendant in the civil suit, and was reportedly to be deposed on Monday.

No telling if the civil suit and the shooting of Judge Mullins are related.

2/1/2022 -- Suit alleges Kentucky deputy forced woman to have sex in judge's chamber in lieu of fees

ETA: Fields was later indicted (Sept 2022) and accepted a guilty plea agreement in January 2024. Fields was working at the District Court (not the County Sheriff) when the incidents occurred.

Ex-deputy sheriff is sentenced; one victim tells of ‘nightmares’ - The Mountain Eagle

A former Letcher County deputy sheriff who pleaded guilty to raping a female prisoner who was on home incarceration will spend six months in the Letcher County Jail, where he formerly worked as a deputy jailer. Ben Fields, who was a court security officer for the sheriff ’s office and worked a...
www.themountaineagle.com www.themountaineagle.com
 
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Letcher County, Kentucky is in the far southeastern corner of Kentucky and is right next to the Kentucky-Virginia border.

Whitesburg is the county seat of Letcher County. Whitesburg is 146 miles southeast of Lexington and 32 miles east of Hazard.
 
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Good grief, there are laws and this sheriff risks his life as he knew it for what ?
The sheriff knows more about the law & how the justice system works; than some do.

Go after someone if you feel you have cause --- within the due process of law.
Take them to court with the evidence.
Don't risk going to prison for a very long time.
We will see what comes out of all of this.
Sheriff Stines (I've read it as Stiles and Stiler as well ? *sigh*) shattered two families.
Omo.
 
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Members of a Sheriff's department usually have broad security access to the behind-the-scene area outside the Judge's chamber (which is really just a moderately secured office).

I wonder if the perpetrator, in this case, had security clearance and knowledge of how to attack this Judge.
 
This is where my grandfather served as county attorney (forever and ever ago). It's the place where I learned there is a lie in "beLIEve". I'll wait for some facts... which may or may not appear. ETA: Nothing would surprise me from this little town.

jmo
 
You all say follow the process of the law....but have you ever been in that situation? My best friend was assaulted by her stepfather at 8 and reported him. Nothing was done as he had connections.

Not saying anything similar happened here as we just don't know but there are times where our criminal justice system fails people. IMHO.
 
TootsieFootsie said:
In my opinion there is no excuse for murdering someone.
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I think everybody can relate to rage and anger over a perceived injustice but taking the law into your own hands -- especially the elected Sheriff, is another matter.

Stiles life for all intents and purposes is over too. He's only 44, and likely has young children who he will not be able to raise, or take part in their accomplishments. SMH...

MOO
 
Seattle1 said:
www.courier-journal.com

Who is Mickey Stines? What to know about Letcher County sheriff accused in fatal shooting

Letcher County Sheriff Mickey Stines has been arrested in connection to a shooting at the Letcher County Courthouse on Thursday.
www.courier-journal.com

9/19/24

According to a 2007 article from The Mountain Eagle, Stines was formerly a bailiff for that Letcher County District Court prior to being elected sheriff in 2018.

What notable cases has Stines been involved in?​

In a 2022 suit filed in U.S. District Court alleging a Letcher County deputy sheriff offered "favorable treatment for sexual favors," Stines was listed as a defendant for "for allegedly failing to properly train" the deputy sheriff, the Courier Journal previously reported.

Stiles was to be deposed for the above suit on Monday.

More at link...
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After reading these articles this may play out a lot different than it first appeared.

What if Stines wasn’t aware of the behavior taking place in the court house and when this lawsuit came up he started to dig deeper and now that he was being deposed he found way more than he wanted in his digging and wanted to give the judge an opportunity to come clean of anything he may have known about since these incidents were done in his chambers. IMO a sheriff being trained on using a handgun properly would not need to use multiple shots if he intended to walk in and take another person’s life. And from my non expert observation from seeing other instances in the news of when an officer shoots their weapon at a person who has made them feel in danger at the time is when the officer would shoot multiple times in reaction of fearing for their own life. So honestly who knows what really took place and what other evidence may or may not be uncovered. IMO if he did it intentionally, then no I do not think others should take the law in their own hands no matter their authority, but if he did it in self defense in some way or another and didn’t intend to walk in those chambers to flat out take his life, then I would have to say I would defend myself if I felt my life was in danger.

IMO the quick murder in the first degree charges was well before the time that they had to process a scene or talk to the alleged murderer.

I feel so bad for the families of both.

And, no, this is not the Mickey that I want to have a voice for. Ha! But one day I will become brave enough to ask you amazing sleuthers for help with my Mickey :)
 
Cryptic said:
<modsnip: Quoted post was modsnipped> ... I strongly suspect that this was an US style honor killing.

If so, the area where it occurred in notable in that eastern Kentucky was famous / infamous for various forms of honor killings and revenge honor killings. One of the clans in the Hatfield McCoy feud was based in eastern Kentucky. The other clan was across the state line in West Virginia.
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Click on the DM link and read the comments.
 
Bounceycat said:
There's no reason for any case in the US to have to be solved through an honor killing without first at least attempting to go though the legal system - which I've found zero evidence of any legal proceedings between these two. Has anyone else?
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I would not use the term honor killing. I don't think that's correct. I might label it Appalachian Justice though. amoo
 
Seattle1 said:
I think everybody can relate to rage and anger over a perceived injustice but taking the law into your own hands -- especially the elected Sheriff, is another matter.

Stiles life for all intents and purposes is over too. He's only 44, and likely has young children who he will not be able to raise, or take part in their accomplishments. SMH...

MOO
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It seems like charges were filed quickly, before the scene was properly analyzed and evidence taken.

He was shot at 3 p.m. Thursday, and a few hours later there are charges of 1st degree murder. I would like more information about how charges were filed so quickly.
 
MickeysVoice said:
After reading these articles this may play out a lot different than it first appeared.

What if Stines wasn’t aware of the behavior taking place in the court house and when this lawsuit came up he started to dig deeper and now that he was being deposed he found way more than he wanted in his digging and wanted to give the judge an opportunity to come clean of anything he may have known about since these incidents were done in his chambers. IMO a sheriff being trained on using a handgun properly would not need to use multiple shots if he intended to walk in and take another person’s life. And from my non expert observation from seeing other instances in the news of when an officer shoots their weapon at a person who has made them feel in danger at the time is when the officer would shoot multiple times in reaction of fearing for their own life. So honestly who knows what really took place and what other evidence may or may not be uncovered. IMO if he did it intentionally, then no I do not think others should take the law in their own hands no matter their authority, but if he did it in self defense in some way or another and didn’t intend to walk in those chambers to flat out take his life, then I would have to say I would defend myself if I felt my life was in danger.

IMO the quick murder in the first degree charges was well before the time that they had to process a scene or talk to the alleged murderer.

I feel so bad for the families of both.

And, no, this is not the Mickey that I want to have a voice for. Ha! But one day I will become brave enough to ask you amazing sleuthers for help with my Mickey :)
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I disagree with this. A civil lawsuit is not something an elected Sheriff with qualified immunity will throw away his life over. The sentence for the perp of 6 months in jail and 6.5 yrs probation on its own speaks volumes why this matter likely had nothing to do with the murder of the District Court Judge (Mullins). Take note this is not even the victim's jurisdiction as the civil suit is filed in US District Court -- i.e., Federal jurisdiction.

I've not read any MSM viewer comments but I agree with others -- this cold blooded kill seems personal between Stiles Stines and Mullins. MOO
 
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