Kentucky Judge Fatally Shot in Courthouse by Sheriff Facing Lawsuit
In September 2024, Kentucky District Court Judge Kevin Mullins was fatally shot in his courthouse chambers by Letcher County Sheriff Shawn "Mickey" Stines. Stines was then arrested and charged with murder, as new details are still coming out about the events that led to the shooting. On the latest episode of Us Weekly's Uncovered, investigative journalist Kristin Thorne explains how accusations against another officer may have led to the fatal shooting.
Investigators have said that Stine shot Mullins nine times before he immediately turned himself in to police. Security footage captured the shooting in the judge's chambers, though it's not known what Mullins and Stines spoke about beforehand because the video doesn't have audio.
Thorne spoke to independent journalist Gavin Fish, who has been covering the case extensively on his YouTube channel, about the events that led up to the shooting.
Fish explained that the case actually started with a lawsuit and a prosecution of a man named Ben Fields.
"Ben Fields was a deputy sheriff, and he also worked in the Letcher County Courthouse as a bailiff, and he kind of side-hustled as the guy who was in charge of the GPS monitoring of the inmates in the Letcher County Jail when they got off for house arrest or for work release," Fish explained.
A few female prisoners came forward with allegations against Fields, claiming that "they had been forced to trade sexual favors" with him "in order to get preferential treatment."
"Sometimes he wouldn't even put their ankle monitor on. He would just give them the ankle monitor to put in their purse ‖ if they would give him sexual favors," he said, adding that the act "is institutional sexual assault."
The women who made the allegations then filed a lawsuit against the sheriff's office and Stines, claiming that "he either knew or should have known what Mr. Fields was doing."
Stines was called to give a deposition in the lawsuit.
In the weeks leading up to the deposition, people like Stine's wife, his daughter and coworkers said that he was experiencing mental health challenges, including that he couldn't sleep and was acting paranoid. Fish added that while people were aware of his struggles, no one seemed to help Stines.
The deposition took place on a Monday, and "it all came to a head" when he went to the judge's chambers that Thursday.
"He pulls his weapon and he holds it at his side, and Kevin Mullins is doing this, I mean, hands up, he's trying to make himself as sympathetic and as innocent as possible in the mind of Mickey Stines."
Despite Mullins attempts to calm Stines down, Stines shot off the first round of bullets about six feet away from the judge, as seen in the surveillance video.
"Judge Mullins struggles. He's hiding, he's under the desk, he's trying to get away," Fish said, adding that Stines, according to investigators, ultimately shot Mullins nine times before the judge died.
Stines turned himself in immediately. The responding officer's bodycam footage shows a completely different Stine. Thorne said he looked dazed, confused and paranoid as he sat in the hallway outside of the office. Stines was convinced that the officers were going to kill him.
The case is ongoing and a trial date has not yet been set. Stines' attorneys have asked the judge to hold a hearing to determine if their client has a serious mental illness or intellectual disability. If the judge agrees, under Kentucky law, the death penalty would be taken off the table.
