Surveillance video of a Kentucky judge getting fatally shot in his chambers last month was shown during a hearing in the case of the sheriff accused of killing him.
Spectators cried out in the Morgan County courtroom as the video played last week, WDKY-TV reported.
‘Everything seemed fine between them. There was no clue that anything was wrong at all.’
You can view the surveillance clip of the shooting here; it omits the actual shots being fired, and it’s included in a larger video report about the shooting.
Former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines appeared before a judge last Tuesday afternoon for a probable cause hearing, WDKY said. State police said Stines, 43, fatally shot District Judge Kevin Mullins in his courthouse chambers in Whitesburg on Sept. 19.
Stines turned himself in after the shooting and was charged with first-degree murder, the New York Times reported, citing police.
Stines — who’s accused of shooting Mullins eight times — pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.
Kentucky State Police Detective Clayton Stamper testified that the full video of the shooting shows Stines using his own phone to make multiple calls, then using the judge’s phone to make a call, the Louisville Courier Journal reported, adding that the shooting followed.
Stamper testified that the calls were to Stines’ daughter, the Courier Journal said. Stamper added that the phones have been sent to forensic teams for examination, the Courier Journal noted, adding that the daughter’s phone has not been examined. Stamper also said the phone number of Stines’ daughter had been saved in the judge’s phone and was called before the shooting, the Courier Journal reported.
However, Kentucky State Police Trooper Matt Gayheart told WDKY in a separate story that contrary to how it was stated in court, investigators won’t know if the number of Stines’ daughter was saved in Mullins’ phone until forensic reports come back in a few weeks. But the call log reportedly showed her number had been called prior to the shooting, the station noted.
The shooting is particularly curious since Stines and Mullins reportedly had been decades-long friends. What’s more, the pair went to lunch at the Streetside Grill & Bar on Main Street just hours before the shooting, the Daily Mail reported.
A restaurant employee told the outlet that Stines and Mullins ordered their usual lunch — both having chicken wings with salad.
“Everything seemed fine between them. There was no clue that anything was wrong at all,” an employee said. “You wouldn’t have guessed there was the slightest problem.”
A woman who reportedly works for the Letcher County Sheriff’s Office also gave her phone to investigators for examination, WDKY said, adding that Stamper testified that she was one of Stines’ employees and believed she’d received text messages from Stines that noted what occurred at lunch and led to the shooting.
Under cross-examination, Stamper said that when Stines “was taken into custody, I was told by one of the other officers that were there that he made the comment, ‘They’re trying to kidnap my wife and kid,’” WDKY added.
Stines’ lawyer also argued that the charges against his client should be lowered to manslaughter given Stamper’s testimony claiming the shooting was the result of “extreme emotional disturbance” and there’s no evidence showing the shooting was planned.
Court documents indicated that the defense established probable cause in last Tuesday’s hearing, and the case is set to be heard by a grand jury, WDKY reported.
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