Former Kentucky sheriff pleads not guilty in the fatal shooting of a judge in the courthouse

A former Kentucky sheriff charged in manslaughter charges pleaded not guilty Monday as he returned to the same courthouse where the two worked closely for years and where the attack occurred.

A grand jury indicted former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines last week on charges of murdering a public official. Stines, who served as sheriff for several years, resigned after the Sept. 19 attack on the courthouse in Whitesburg, a small town about 90 miles (146 kilometers) southeast of Lexington near the Virginia border.

No bond was set at the hearing, so Stines will remain jailed in another county. The judge cited “community safety concerns” and the seriousness of the charge as reasons why she declined to set bond for Stines, who wore a gray jail uniform during the hearing.

The former sheriff is accused of shooting District Judge Kevin Mullins in the judge’s chambers. Mullins, who held the judgeship for fifteen years, died at the scene and Stines surrendered without incident. Stines could face the death penalty if convicted of the murder charge.

Police have not provided a motive for the shooting.

Video of the judge being shot was played during a court hearing last month. The video, which contained no audio, showed a man identified by police as Stines pulling out a gun and shooting the judge as he sat at his desk. The man walked around the desk, pointed the gun at the judge – who had fallen to the ground – and fired again, it turned out. Some people in the courtroom cried as it was played.

Mullins died of multiple gunshot wounds, a Kentucky State Police detective said at the earlier hearing.

The detective also testified that Stines tried to call his daughter on Mullins’ phone and his own phone just before the shooting. Investigators found no weapon on Mullins or in his rooms, the detective said.

On the day of the shooting, Mullins and Stines met for lunch with several other people at a restaurant near the courthouse, the detective said.