In a shocking turn of events, a Kentucky sheriff is facing murder charges following the fatal shooting of a district judge in his courthouse chambers. The incident occurred in the rural county of Letcher on Thursday, with Sheriff Shawn Stines accused of killing District Judge Kevin Mullins. The Kentucky State Police reported that the deadly confrontation took place inside the Whitesville courthouse, though the reason for the dispute that led to the shooting has not been revealed.
Mullins, 54, was struck multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene. He had served as a judge for 15 years. Stines, 53, was taken into custody without any resistance, according to the police report.
The incident has sent ripples of shock and dismay through the local community and the state judiciary. Chief Justice Laurance VanMeter of the Kentucky Supreme Court expressed his distress over the violent act, stating that the court staff were deeply affected by the news. The courthouse, located about 150 miles southeast of Lexington, was the scene of the shooting that took place just before 3 p.m., prompting several nearby schools to go on lockdown, according to local news outlets.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing. The courthouse was ordered to remain closed on Friday by the judge-executive of Letcher County. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear responded to the incident, expressing his sorrow over the prevalence of violence and his hope for a more peaceful future.
Mullins had been serving as a district judge in Letcher County since his appointment by former Governor Steve Beshear in 2009. Before that, he had spent ten years as an assistant commonwealth attorney. Mullins was recognized for his innovative approach to handling drug addiction cases, favoring treatment over incarceration. In 2010, he launched a program that allowed inmates with substance use disorders to enroll in inpatient treatment as a condition of their pretrial release.
Mullins also played a key role in establishing the Addiction Recovery Care program, which offered peer support services in the courthouse. This program has since been adopted in at least 50 counties in Kentucky. He was a founding member of the Responsive Effort to Support Treatment in Opioid Recovery Efforts Leadership Team. Stines, meanwhile, was elected as the Sheriff of Letcher County in 2018 and was reelected in 2022.