An article about the Judge and his family.
Judge Kevin Mullins's wife, along with countless members of their community, honored the late magistrate at a touching memorial days after his murder.
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On Sept. 19, 2024, Letcher County Sheriff Shawn "Mickey" Stines, 43, walked into the chambers of
District Judge Kevin Mullins and shot him multiple times. The 54-year-old magistrate was pronounced dead at the scene, which resulted in Stines turning himself in to Kentucky State Police.
He reportedly cooperated with authorities and was arrested without incident.
Stines has been charged with first-degree murder and is awaiting trial. Lead county prosecutor Matt Butler had to recuse himself from this case, due to the fact that his wife and
Mullins’ wife are sisters. Obviously, this is devastating for their family, who are dealing with a horrific tragedy.
SOURCE: FACEBOOK/KIMBERLY MULLINS
(L-R): Kimberly Mullins and Judge Kevin Mullins; Kevin Mullins's daughters
Judge Kevin Mullins wife, Kimberly Mullins, was proud to be his spouse.
While sharing his obituary on
her Facebook page, Kimberly said she was proud to be the wife to a man she described as irreplaceable. “Kevin was a lot of things to a lot of people,” she wrote. “But he was everything to me and my girls.”
In his obituary, Kimberly said her husband died in his chambers where he “spent his career working to help people.” This is all the more evident based on what others have said about Mullins in the wake of his death. At a memorial service held in Mullins’ honor, several people spoke of his trailblazing efforts to help those suffering from substance abuse.
He pushed for treatment over incarceration, reported
The New York Times.
J. Foster Cotthoff, a district judge in Christian County, said Mullins was “light-years ahead” of other jurisdictions in terms of presiding over cases that involved drug use or addiction.
Kaci Lucas, 34, was one of those individuals on the receiving end of Mullins’ compassion. She found herself before him on multiple occasions until, in 2019, he helped send her to a drug rehabilitation center. She now works at a similar facility and is eternally grateful for all he did.
In 2008, Mullins officiated Randy Billiter’s wedding. The 61-year-old retired coal miner met the judge the previous year, and was struck by how kind he was. “He was always the type of guy that’d help you,” recalled Billiter. “If he could help you, he’d help you.”
Sheriff Stines and Judge Mullins were friends. What happened?
Stines and Mullins frequently had lunch together at the StreetSide Grill & Bar near the courthouse. In fact, they dined together the day Stines shot Mullins. Then a little before 3 p.m., Stines allegedly “walked into Mullins’s outer office and told court employees that he wanted to speak with the judge alone” reported
The Mountain Eagle.
Soon after entering Mullins’ inner office, employees said they heard gunshots.
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Earlier in the week, Stines was deposed in conjunction with an "ongoing federal lawsuit involving a former deputy who coerced a woman to have sex with him in Mullins’ chambers in 2021," per
CNN. A lawsuit was filed against Stines and deputy Ben Fields in 2022, by Sabrina Adkins and Jennifer Hill.
The lawsuit claims Fields told Adkins she could "pay the fees associated with an ankle monitor, in exchange for sex." The two allegedly met multiple times after hours in Mullins's office because they were no cameras there.
This occurred over a seven-month period. Hill was sentenced to home confinement for her crimes and said Fields often harassed her and demanded oral sex, then later sexual intercourse, in order to remain out of jail.
Fields was charged with rape and tampering with a monitoring device and received a suspension as part of his plea deal. Unfortunately, Hill passed away, resulting in the criminal charges relating to her case being dropped though her estate is still pursuing the lawsuit. Adkins is also still involved in the lawsuit. At Fields's sentencing she told the court, "My nightmares got so bad I had to go on medicine and probably will be for the rest of my life."
The lawsuit accuses Stines of not properly investigating the allegations lodged agains Fields. Some suspect the shooting is related to these ongoing legal proceedings. According to
CBS News, Stines has plead not guilty.
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