Kentucky sheriff who allegedly killed judge accused of ignoring deputy’s abuse of woman in his office

The sheriff who allegedly shot and killed A rural Kentucky judge has been charged in his federal chambers with failing to investigate allegations that one of his deputies repeatedly sexually abused a woman in the same judge’s chambers. Letcher County Sheriff Shawn M. Stines has been charged with first-degree murder in Thursday’s shooting.

The preliminary investigation indicates Stines, 43, shot multiple times at District Judge Kevin Mullins following an argument inside the courthouse, according to Kentucky State Police.

Mullins, 54, who had served as judge for 15 years, died at the scene and Stines surrendered without incident.

The exact subject of the dispute between the two men was not immediately clear.

“We know it was an argument between the two that led to the incident, but exactly what happened before the shots were fired are things we’re still trying to get answers to,” Kentucky State Trooper Matt Gayheart told reporters Thursday night.

Gayheart called the shooting an isolated incident.

Stines was dismissed Monday in a lawsuit filed by two women, one of whom claimed a deputy sheriff forced her to have sex in Mullins’ office for six months in exchange for her escaping from jail. The lawsuit accuses the sheriff of “deliberate indifference in failing to properly train and supervise” the deputy.

Former deputy sheriff Ben Fields pleaded guilty to raping the prisoner while she was under house arrest. Fields was sentenced this year to six months in prison and then six and a half years of probation for rape, sodomy, perjury and tampering with a prisoner monitoring device, The Mountain Eagle reported. Three charges related to a second woman were dropped because she is now deceased.

Stines fired Fields, who was his successor as Mullins’ bailiff, for “conduct unbecoming” after the lawsuit was filed in 2022, the Courier Journal reported at the time.

The judge’s killing sent shockwaves through the tight-knit Appalachian town. Whitesburg is the county seat of about 1,700 people, located about 145 miles (233 kilometers) southeast of Lexington. Rather than hold the sheriff in the local jail, authorities placed Stines in the Leslie County Detention Center, two counties away, where he remained Friday morning.

The county’s top prosecutor, Matt Butler, described an outpouring of sympathy as he recused himself and his office from the investigation, citing social and family ties to Mullins.

“We all know each other here. … Anybody in Letcher County would tell you that Judge Mullins and I married sisters and have children who are first cousins ​​but act like siblings,” Butler said in a statement from his office. “For this reason, among others, I have already taken steps to recuse myself and my entire office.”

Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman said his office would work with an area commonwealth’s attorney as special prosecutors in the criminal case. Mullins was shot multiple times in the shooting, state police said.

“We will fully investigate and seek justice,” Coleman said on social media.

Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Laurance B. VanMeter said he was “shocked by this act of violence” and that the justice system was “shaken by this news.”

Letcher County Judge-Executive closed the county courthouse Friday.

It’s unclear whether Stines had an attorney — state police referred inquiries to a spokesman who did not immediately respond by email.

“There is far too much violence in this world, and I pray that there is a path to a better future,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in response to the shooting.

Mullins has served as a district judge in Letcher County since he was appointed by former Gov. Steve Beshear in 2009 and elected the following year.