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

[Chimera]

The articles said they have 3 phones in custody and are analyzing them regarding this case. My guess:

1. Sheriff’s
2. Judge’s
3. Sheriff’s UNDERAGE high school daughter

MOO

Opinion only : Although it may have been a court reporter/stenographer's, or other courtroom employee ?
All is speculation at this point.
Still nothing stands out as a cause for murder.
Imo.

The sheriff’s comment is strange:

“They’re trying to kidnap my wife and kid.”

Who is they?

Perhaps he (sheriff) was wrong and his family were actually leaving him of their own accord.

Was the judge helping family to leave? Or something more sinister?

It's only an opinion and speculation.

Bbm.
Very likely ! And, some paranoia thrown in for good measure ?
Imo--this was not about self-defense (i.e., someone breaking into your home and threatening you and your family & children !).
Some type of perceived threat or grievance -- but work it out legally.
With the right evidence, Mullins could have charges brought against him.
What if Stine's 'proof' is only hearsay ?
He could face life without parole or the ultimate penalty.
Murdering a judge is going to be a difficult rap to try to beat.
Imo.
Omo.

 

[Inthedetails]

this bit by defense here is funny to me. Not ha ha funny but . . . defense attorney trying to suggest that there is some sort of extreme emotional upset that caused the sheriff to shoot the judge and he should only be tried for manslaughter but does not elicit or present any testimony that suggests an extreme upset existed. Nice try buddy but so far murder 1 seems more appropriate. If you want to show us something that suggests otherwise we are all anxious to see/hear it.

I think manslaughter would be a tough sell when you see the perp shooting more than once at a man cowering in a corner of a room behind a desk.

But a local jury in that county might convict on manslaughter rather than murder when the defendant is a local man they like?? I'm curious what the grand jury will say.

jmo

 

[Chimera]

No they have a cell phone from some one who who turned it over to them having over heard part of a lunch at the courthouse that day conversation .

Yes, that was stated before.
Thanks for clarifying.

 

[OldAce]

this bit by defense here is funny to me. Not ha ha funny but . . . defense attorney trying to suggest that there is some sort of extreme emotional upset that caused the sheriff to shoot the judge and he should only be tried for manslaughter but does not elicit or present any testimony that suggests an extreme upset existed. Nice try buddy but so far murder 1 seems more appropriate. If you want to show us something that suggests otherwise we are all anxious to see/hear it.

If only the video had audio and they showed the entire footage of the event...

 

[vls12345]

DV is seeming like a likely impetus to me. While I doubt Judge Mullins issued a protective order (wouldn't that be a matter of pubic record + MS would have been served), he may have been supporting the family &/or advising them of steps to take in order to (safely) leave.

Also, my impression of the Sheriff’s office employee's phone that was turned over: my impression is that texts on it may not be directly related to this case but rather an indicator of MS's mindset that day. Whether that means he seemed normal or angry or paranoid or something else, I don't know.

Since it was said that Mullins asked MS if they needed to meet in his chambers, I took that as he was willing to have a hard conversation with MS. (I believe @Inthedetails said similar up thread.)

All very much MOO.

 

[acehard]

I think manslaughter would be a tough sell when you see the perp shooting more than once at a man cowering in a corner of a room behind a desk.

But a local jury in that county might convict on manslaughter rather than murder when the defendant is a local man they like?? I'm curious what the grand jury will say.

jmo

There's an old case where a Deputy Sheriff shot and killed the Sheriff in a Kentucky court infront of witnesses and surrendered. After several mistrials, he served 7 years in prison. He thought he was going to get fired or something. Jury trials are messy

ETA

The dead sheriff's wife became the first female Sheriff of Kentucky, if that's any consolation.

 

[Dre]

If indeed there was a sexual relationship between the judge and daughter, like many, I do see that as being a mitigating factor for sentencing.

On the other hand, being the Sheriff, having taken an oath to serve the community, killing the way he did, should be an aggravating factor.

Jmo, not a lawyer

 

[vls12345]

Would MS have access to his FB from jail? I was just checking his feed because there was a post I had seen previously that I was going to post here and comment on.

But now I am not seeing it and a few posts now seem to be marked "private" (which I don't remember from scrolling through his FB before).

Eta: Link to his FB:

https://m.facebook.com/mickey.stines/

 

[MassGuy]

Would MS have access to his FB from jail? I was just checking his feed because there was a post I had seen previously that I was going to post here and comment on.

But now I am not seeing it and a few posts now seem to be marked "private" (which I don't remember from scrolling through his FB before).

Eta: Link to his FB:

https://m.facebook.com/mickey.stines/

Highly unlikely. I think someone may be doing that on his behalf.

 

[justtrish]

So the judge and sheriff have lunch together. Been best buddies for years. Both pillars of the community. Apparently, sheriff asked to speak with the judge in his chambers saying he needed to discuss something with him. The two men had a dispute about what? Cell phones were exchanged? That followed with gunshots being heard and the sheriff surrendering without incident.

Why would someone be so willing to give up their freedom so quickly - unless it's personal?

This sounds a lot like rage and very personal. Did sheriff see something that triggered the crime on the judge’s phone? Seeing minor daughter’s phone number on sheriff’s phone and dialing phone number is a red flag.

All jmo

The fact they were close personal friends for all these years tells me that they should have trusted one another or at the very least given each other the benefit of the doubt. I feel like the sheriff might have seen or heard things about the judge.. let's be real we all know what our friends are up to usually.. sometimes we overlook things because we like the person or we know things that we can look past because we have a history with them. The judge likely knew things about the sheriff also. It could be shady dealings, something criminal, something not criminal, but maybe iffy... we all tend to have secrets about our friends that we don't share with others. All that to say, I think if the sheriff trusted the judge 100% and he saw let's say his daughters number in his phone, why would he assume something bad about that right off? Why escalate it to shooting him immediately?

I think it's possible he knew the judge was up to something.. or they both were involved in something not on the up and up and it was fine as long as it didn't involve the sheriffs family, but then something went to far. If the judge was impecable in the sheriffs eyes and then this one thing came along that upset the sheriff, I don't think he would have jumped right to killing him. I think the sheriff was in on some of the goings on and it went to far when it included his family.

Just thinking out loud. All my opinions on possible scenarios..

 

[bestill]

We knew the Judge being shot multiple times was triggered by some event, I'm still processing seeing it on video and MS demeanor the times we have seen him in court. He's very unemotional and seems removed from what he did. It's weird.

 

[Dotta]

"In the wake of the shooting,
Mullins' wife Kimberly
shared a devastated tribute to her husband.

'Proud to be the wife of this Irreplaceable man,'
she wrote.

'Kevin was a lot of things to a lot of people.
But he was Everything to me and my girls'."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1841516909801492564

 

[fsngruv]

What struck me first was how incredibly cluttered it is!

Right. The chambers are very small and cluttered, and I'm curious why there is even security cameras in there in the first place, and it makes me feel more horrified to think they were there during the assaults.

 

[Soulmagent]

109 People have donated to MS 's wifes and daughters GF page with donations still coming in today. they have reached 14 percent of the goal .

 

[FromGermany1]

I have NEVER seen such a tiny Judge's Chamber.

Beneath all dignity to have to work there, was my first thought.

 

[musicaljoke]

That does not look like any judge's chambers I have ever seen, in any state, at any level of court. That is just odd.

Maybe he was in the butt end of a hall way while renovations were going on in the building. Yeah, he doesn't even have a book case in this crazy space.

 

[Chimera]

If indeed there was a sexual relationship between the judge and daughter, like many, I do see that as being a mitigating factor for sentencing.

On the other hand, being the Sheriff, having taken an oath to serve the community, killing the way he did, should be an aggravating factor.

Jmo, not a lawyer

Of the many motives for murder, and we still don't know even with the phone exchanges between Mullins and Stines... that still may not help Stines.
If someone kills during a hit and run, or a home invasion and kills a family member, then a defendant may not be liable if they take the perp's life.
In this case, it might depend on how the jury looks at it, correct ?
I'm also not a lawyer.
Omo.

 

[Chimera]

Maybe he was in the butt end of a hall way while renovations were going on in the building. Yeah, he doesn't even have a book case in this crazy space.

Agreed.
Almost like a janitorial closet.
Was this the same place that the other deputy committed the SA crimes ?
Not that it would've made a difference if the chambers were lavish ... but I'm guessing there were no cameras present during the aforementioned attacks ?
Something rotten in the state of ... Letcher county.
Omo.

 

[iamshadow21]

Of the many motives for murder, and we still don't know even with the phone exchanges between Mullins and Stines... that still may not help Stines.
If someone kills during a hit and run, or a home invasion and kills a family member, then a defendant may not be liable if they take the perp's life.
In this case, it might depend on how the jury looks at it, correct ?
I'm also not a lawyer.
Omo.

Not a lawyer either, but in the immortal words of Jake Peralta, "Cool motive, still murder."

He had time to think and plan, and then shot and continued shooting surely after his target was mortally wounded, repositioning multiple times. That's not heat of the moment, reactive. That's cold blooded and calculated.

MOO

 

[Occam's Zebra]

Logically, that does make sense, and I've thought about a scenario like that myself. The counterpoint is that they seem to be standing by him, which I wouldn't expect if that scenario was true.

But what else would they do? They're not going to sit on the prosecution side of the courtroom, and they aren't going to stay home - think of the rumors that either of those actions would initiate. It's a very small town.