LETCHER COUNTY, Ky. — Commonwealth’s Attorney Matt Butler has recused himself from the criminal case against Letcher County Sheriff Shawn Stines, saying he is too close to both men involved in the fatal shooting at the county courthouse on Thursday in east Kentucky.
Kentucky State Police said Stines shot District Judge Kevin Mullins multiple times in his courthouse chambers following an argument earlier in the day.
The sheriff was arrested without incident and has been charged with murder.
In a video shared to social media Friday morning, Butler said he often worked with Stines in the courtroom, adding that he and Mullins were brothers-in-law who also worked together for several years prior to him becoming a judge.
“[Mullins] was the assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney when I was the public defender, we had fierce litigation. I respected him. We fought hard for our respective sides in court and tried cases against each other,” he said. “Never had a disagreement outside of that courtroom. I always thought he was hilarious, I always thought he was witty.”
According to Butler, Mullins was always kind to children, saying he had “endless patience” for them and found them entertaining.
“I will always appreciate and respect for how he treated my children personally and how he was as a father to his beautiful daughters,” he added.
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman’s office will take over the prosecution, alongside Commonwealth’s Attorney Jackie Steele, who serves Laurel and Knox Counties.
Butler went on to address the community in his video, calling for a “loud minority” to quiet down and respect the grieving families.
“What I will not be is a source of gossip, I will not be the rumor pipeline,” Butler said. “If you want to speculate and gossip, do not make me a part of that conversation…and you should really take a look at yourself and ask yourself if you want to be a part of that conversation.”
He asked for continued prayers for everyone involved.
“[My children] lost their uncle. My beautiful nieces have lost their father,” he said. “We’re gong to be respectful of each other while we grieve and we’re going to do things to make our county safer and make sure this does not happen again.”
Courthouse lacked security
Letcher County’s courthouse is one of the last in Kentucky without a metal detector or security at the front door, according to Butler.
“We deserve better,” he said. “Every single person that works in our courthouse should feel safe at work. I know that is not the case right now, and I know that needs to be the case.”
Butler also plans to “wear out the phone lines” until his staff office is moved into a safer location. He said it currently resides in a former retail space, describing it as “one big room with two glass doors.”
He also wants to fight for better compensation for all his staff members, one of whom was in the courthouse’s judicial suite during the shooting and may now be a witness.
Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.