Kentucky sheriff who shot best friend judge presents Hail Mary defense that could tip the case
Shawn 'Mickey' Stines filed to have his indictment for killing Letcher County District Judge Kevin Mullins in September 2024 thrown out, accusing the prosecution of misconduct.
Attorneys for the ex-top cop alleged in new court documents on Wednesday prosecutors had an undocumented meeting with the grand jury before it indicted him.
The filing further alleges the grand jury requested records about the case that the prosecution did not provide, arguing these two incidents may have biased the jury.
Despite prosecutors presenting footage alleging to show Stines shooting Mullins in his court chambers, Stines' attorneys argue the alleged misconduct should dismiss the case entirely.
They are requesting a hearing to prove the grand jury bias, and are asking for the judge to throw out the indictment 'with prejudice', meaning Stines couldn't be tried again, per WHAS11.
The former sheriff had previously indicated he was preparing an insanity defense in court, and his attorneys said the shooting was the result of 'fear for the safety of his wife and daughter.'
Police have not offered details of a motive behind the shooting, however Stines' attorneys said it came after testimony that Stines gave at a deposition where he answered questions about one of his deputies allegedly sexually assaulting jail inmates in Mullins' chambers.
In March, before the alleged prosecution misconduct emerged, Stines' defense team said his state of mind at the time of the shooting would become key to his upcoming trial.
Defense attorney Jeremy Bartley previously told NewsNation that he was preparing to argue extreme emotional distress led Stines to carry out the shooting, and indicated it was related to the sheriff's deposition that came days before.
An accuser in that case claimed that she was forced by former Deputy Sheriff Ben Fields to have sex in Mullins' chambers for six months in exchange for staying out of jail.
Accuser Sabrina Adkins previously told NewsNation in a separate interview that Mullins 'does have some videotapes of some stuff in the judge's chambers… just with girls, sexual and stuff.'
Fields was fired by Stines before being ultimately arrested and sentenced to six months of jail, with Stines testifying in his case.
Bartley said Stines feared that backlash from his deposition testimony caused him to fear that his or his family's lives were in danger.
The attorney said Stines' 'mental health' was affected by the perceived threat, adding: 'Ultimately, he was in fear for the safety of his wife and his daughter, and I think what you see there is the result of that.'
The shooting rocked the small town of Whitesburg where Stines and Mullins were well known figures, with allegations since coming out that Judge Mullins himself may have been tied to the sex-for-favors scandal.
When Stines was taken into custody for the shooting, he allegedly exclaimed: 'They're trying to kidnap my wife and kid.'
Bartley added at the time of his insanity defense filing that he believes there may be 'more evidence that would support a finding that he wasn't criminally responsible', but did not offer specifics.
Stines has remained in custody since the shooting, which was captured on shocking footage that showed the sheriff enter Mullins' chambers and blast eight bullets into him.
In the moments before, officials said that Stines tried to call his daughter before grabbing Mullins' phone and also trying to call her.
Prosecutors said the shooting came seemingly out of the blue, as the sheriff and judge had enjoyed lunch together that afternoon, and shared an outside table at the popular Streetside Grill & Bar on Main Street for lunch, only a few hundred yards from the courthouse.
The pair were longtime friends and lunchtime regulars together at the sports bar and on that fateful Thursday ordered their usual – both having the $13.99 wings with salad.
Detectives are probing a potential motive, with one theory reportedly investigated by detectives being whether Stines discovered his daughter's phone number in Mullins' phone because he called her moments before the shooting.
Video of the shooting shows Stines pointing his weapon at Mullins as his hands are raised cowering behind his desk - but the sheriff's lawyers insist the killing was not planned.
'It was not something that was planned and occurred in the heat of passion. For us, the highest level of culpability should be manslaughter based on the partial defense of extreme emotional disturbance,' Bartley previously told PEOPLE.
It is not clear when Stines' murder trial may get underway, with prosecutors previously saying the discovery process could take 'some time.'
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