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

[fred&edna]

Didn't realize that KY's death penalty was suspended in 2009.

Capital punishment in Kentucky - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Hmmm... it's been suspended statewide?

I just read this Ky news report (Sept 20, 2024)

Does Kentucky have the death penalty?​

Yes, Kentucky has had the death penalty since it was reinstated nationally in 1976, according to deathpenaltyinfo.org. The state became the second in the U.S. to bar imposing the death penalty on defendants diagnosed as severely mentally ill in 2022.

Which states have the death penalty? Does Kentucky? What we know about Ky. Death Row

Does Kentucky have the death penalty? What states have the death penalty across the U.S. in 2024? What you need to know about Kentucky Death Row and more.

www.courier-journal.com

 

[vls12345]

If it goes to trial, I guess the defense will be angling to seat jealous dads on the jury.

After watching the video in today's hearing & hearing the gasps & crying, I sure hope all the families & friends involved have good support. They've got to be reeling from this.

Imo.

 

[bestill]

Points made today by the defense that I'm interested in.

*Defense atty asking about the social media apps on the phones - could there be dating or hook up apps that the judge and the daughter are both on? JMO

*Defense atty making a point of bringing up that local LE hasn't questioned Mickie while he's been in custody, even before he hired an atty. That's not normal, is it?

*The kidnapping statement and who are "they"

*What happened on the video prior to the shooting that wasn't shown today

*The reaction from the mother when the information about the daughters phone came up. She put her arm around her daughter as if to brace for what was coming.

I'm back to the rumors may be true.
All JMO

 

[MassGuy]

I don't know what his client has or hasn't told him. JMO This was a prelim hearing. The questions he asked lead me to believe that is what he was fishing for, confirmation that some sort of reason for the murder exists and the daughter is it. But that may just be because that is what Stines has suggested to him or the evidence thus far has suggested. I don't know that anything inappropriate has happened.

Also, how would a possible inappropriate relationship with Stines daughter factor in with his comment about "they" trying to abduct his wife and kid?? Who is they and where are they trying to abduct them to??

I’m not saying inappropriate, just that the daughter factors in here. Whether real or imagined, that’s why he appears to have committed this murder.

So a relationship that happened, one that didn’t happen, or some delusional thing related to her.

 

[vls12345]

Thank you! No one on STS brought up that the Sheriff said he was afraid or feared that “they’re trying to kidnap my wife and daughter”. Holy Mary!

Also Joel (from STS) repeated that the Sheriff has not seen his wife nor daughter. A week or so ago, Joel said he’d heard that the Sheriff refused to see them when they came to the jail. This is odd.

And lastly, the denial of sexual abuse involving his daughter was posted by the Sheriff’s wife’s sister-in-law, not his wife, on a page the relative created to raise money for his wife and daughter to live off of.

(What is STS?)

Re: MS refusing to see his wife & daughter at the jail. I wonder if that's so he can stew in his righteous feelings that he was justified, rather than have them question him or deny anything (if his reasons involve his wife &/or daughter)? I feel like he's refusing them out of arrogance, not shame. All MOO.

 

[Curiousobserver]

I’m not saying inappropriate, just that the daughter factors in here. Whether real or imagined, that’s why he appears to have committed this murder.

So a relationship that happened, one that didn’t happen, or some delusional thing related to her.

Do you think she would have been sitting behind her father today if those things were true? I just have so many questions here...

 

[iamshadow21]

(What is STS?)

Re: MS refusing to see his wife & daughter at the jail. I wonder if that's so he can stew in his righteous feelings that he was justified, rather than have them question him or deny anything (if his reasons involve his wife &/or daughter)? I feel like he's refusing them out of arrogance, not shame. All MOO.

I think what he did to the judge had everything to do with catharsis of his own emotions and very little to do with anyone else's needs. So the fact that he's refusing contact makes complete sense to me, because it was all about him anyway.

MOO

 

[legalmomma]

Thank you! No one on STS brought up that the Sheriff said he was afraid or feared that “they’re trying to kidnap my wife and daughter”. Holy Mary!

Also Joel (from STS) repeated that the Sheriff has not seen his wife nor daughter. A week or so ago, Joel said he’d heard that the Sheriff refused to see them when they came to the jail. This is odd.

And lastly, the denial of sexual abuse involving his daughter was posted by the Sheriff’s wife’s sister-in-law, not his wife, on a page the relative created to raise money for his wife and daughter to live off of.

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

Oct 1, 2024

"When he was taken into custody I was told by one of the other officers there that he said They are trying to kidnap my wife and kid"

so now two versions of this statement being reported. first was "he took my wife and kid". now "they are trying to kidnap my wife and kid" who stated this, was it in the hearing? Wondering if I fast forwarded past it. TIA

• tlcya

• 
• 

"They are trying to kidnap my wife and kid" at about 15:53 (from the end..you have to scroll on the recording line)

 

[Live_and_Learn]

There's been an enormous amount of nasty, ugly and horrible happening in that courthouse for a long time, and I'm not feeling confident in how this case will be investigated.

Too many foxes (more aptly snakes) have been guarding the hen house for far too long.

Getting the whole truth and nothing but the truth from some courthouse employees borders on impossible.

Don't get me wrong, there are good, trustworthy, respectable people in that town that aren't stupid (despite how their accent makes them sound)... many who are still my friends. I wish they would/could make a difference at least for the future.

jmo

I would hope no one would presume to judge anyone's intelligence based on accent alone. I did observe the auto-generated closed captions struggling, though. That was unfortunate. So, anyone interested will unfortunately need to listen, not just read.

 

[vls12345]

I think there are so many reasons that the daughter & judge could have had each other's phone numbers. Way more innocent reasons than nefarious ones. (Emergency contact, babysitting, school/team sponsorships, families were supposedly friends so even just that, etc.)

I think MS decided something was fishy & let himself stew for awhile until he created something in his mind. It festered & he decided an execution was in order.

I was also kind of astonished to hear that LE had not yet questioned the daughter without a parent (her mom) present.

Imo.

 

[FromGermany1]

Do you think she would have been sitting behind her father today if those things were true? I just have so many questions here...

I wondered too. She is sorry for her dad, maybe?

 

[arielilane]

Executing someone like the sheriff did (imo) is a good indicator of rage. Why did the judge have rage toward the judge, that's the question. jmo

 

[Parsnip]

“The two men went to lunch earlier in the day with multiple other people, Stamper said. The detective said a witness said at one point Mullins asked Stines if they needed to meet privately, though the context was unclear.”

I missed that during the hearing.

Amid questions about motive, court sees footage of Kentucky judge's courthouse shooting

A Kentucky State Police detective testified about the shooting of Judge Kevin Mullins, offering new information in Sheriff Mickey Stines' murder case.

www.courier-journal.com

 

[Chimera]

There goes (imo) any chance of Stines claiming self-defense.
Which he has not yet, to my knowledge.
Just saying he might have considered it.
Omo.

 

[gremlin444]

Could he have had the number for an innocent reason? Maybe the daughter babysat for him at some point and he had the number to call her?

From the news reporting of the judge's funeral, I'd have to say that both of the judge's daughters appear to be out of the needing to be babysat age range. If there was a babysitting connection, it would have been in years past.

 

[vls12345]

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

Oct 1, 2024

"When he was taken into custody I was told by one of the other officers there that he said They are trying to kidnap my wife and kid"

so now two versions of this statement being reported. first was "he took my wife and kid". now "they are trying to kidnap my wife and kid" who stated this, was it in the hearing? Wondering if I fast forwarded past it. TIA

• tlcya

• 
• 

"They are trying to kidnap my wife and kid" at about 15:53

??? re: the timestamp. I don't hear anything. (I don't think the audio feed was on at that time yet.) Did someone say it in court/on the stand or was it just picked up from conversation among others who weren't on camera or ...?

 

[Seattle1]

My take on the prelim today was if lead investigator Clayton Stamper, KSP hadn't been so obstinate/evasive -- the hearing would have concluded in 8 minutes! Hearsay is admissible during a prelim and I don't know why the self described lead investigator was refusing to say what he heard from others on the case!

Also, found it interesting that a non-sworn sheriff's office employee (who appeared to me be Stiles secretary) voluntarily gave her phone to police containing texts from Stines about his lunch with Mullins, yet the daughter's phone and/or records is not in police custody. Certainly not because probable cause is lacking, right? Why not exclude her phone instead of acting (or being inactive) only to perpetuate rumors surrounding the case from the beginning!

Unlike most States where there's either a Preliminary Hearing or a Grand Jury but NOT both, Kentucky's tiered court system (i.e., lower or District Court before moving to Circuit Court for Trial) provided for both where the mini Prelim ruled in favor of probable cause to hand the case over to a Grand Jury. Hearing these words today from the District Court Judge versus hearing 'the case bound over for trial' just sounded so strange to me. MOO

 

[legalmomma]

It appears the defense will be "severe emotional disturbance" (ie looking at content on the phones) which would require the prosecution to show there was not severe emotional disturbance present. https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=19717
507.020 Murder.(1) A person is guilty of murder when a) With intent to cause the death of another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person; except that in any prosecution a person shall not be guilty under this subsection if he acted under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance for which there was a reasonable explanation or excuse,the reasonableness of which is to be determined from the viewpoint of aperson in the defendant's situation under the circumstances as the defendantbelieved them to be. However, nothing contained in this section shall constitute a defense to a prosecution for or preclude a conviction ofmanslaughter in the first degree or any other crime; or(b) Including, but not limited to, the operation of a motor vehicle undercircumstances manifesting extreme indifference to human life, he wantonly engages in conduct which creates a grave risk of death to another person and thereby causes the death of another person.(2) Murder is a capital offense.

 

[Seattle1]

Per Stamper, Stines only said "treat me fair".
I heard something about "they're trying to kidnap my wife and kid", what on earth???

Yes, I thought "kidnap" was an interesting choice of words. More questions than answers...

 

[I am not Sherlock H.]

I read, that Stines was very taciturn during lunch. Observers noticed this, it seems. If it was like that, his mind was already working on things, I believe. MOO

Yes @FromGermany1 ….. and IMO suspect the sheriff may have been working on premeditation IMO. MOO