A few minutes before former Letcher County Sheriff Mickey Stines is arraigned and less than 50 yards up Main Street in downtown Whitesburg, Alita Vogel is in the main branch of the Letcher public library. She’s the director of the library and was there when District Judge Kevin Mullins was shot to death – allegedly by Stines.
“Mostly it was shock to begin, fear and shock. We, we locked up. We're a block, not even a full block away from the courthouse, so we locked down when we heard there was an active shooter situation at the courthouse, and then when we heard that it was Sheriff Mickey Stines -- shock and disbelief.”
Vogel says she knew both men.
“Actually, Judge Mullins oversaw my mom's estate case, and I ran into Mickey like almost weekly. We held a candidate forum, when there's a big election, about a month before the election. So I met Mickey shortly before he was elected into the sheriff's office.”
Stines was elected in 2018 and reelected four years later. He’d already announced his intention to retire at the end of his second term when, on September 19, he allegedly shot Mullins multiple times in the judge’s office.
“They were friendly and they were friends, like, their families did stuff together before. Mickey was like, a long time ago, at the beginning of his career, he was a bailiff for Judge Mullins.”
Mullins was appointed in 2009 and won the next four elections. Not far from where Vogel sorts through what she calls a year’s worth of paperwork for an annual audit, Larry Hall sorts through books. He grew up in neighboring Perry County, but he’s been a Letcher Countian for 40 years. He agrees with what many here say about what happened the day when one life was taken and others shattered.
“I didn't know either of them real well, but Mickey Stines, I was -- I knew him, spoke to him, when I saw him and things, and he seemed like a pretty upstanding guy. I really don't understand what could have happened between them that caused that, but it's tragic, regardless of what the reasoning for it was, if there was reason for it.”
Jeff Chapman-Crane is also visiting the library. He’s lived in Letcher County for 42 years. He says he knew both men – not well, but he thought well of them.
“We reported an incident to the sheriff. We had someone try to scam us and we talked to him about it, and he told us that that kind of thing was going on and was very helpful. Didn't really ever have any real dealings with the judge, but had seen him around, and, you know, seemed like a really, really fine person.”
Vogel says in some ways, she’s reminded of another terrible thing that happened here a little more than two years ago.
“It's just, it's kind of like what happened after the flood, you know this thing happened, but it's, it's hard to process.
Stines’ arraignment begins at noon and within eight minutes, he’s pleaded not guilty and learned the special judge won’t consider a bond, saying the defense can ask the trial judge for that. Unlike what happened September 19, neither outcome is a surprise. Afterwards, in the hallway outside the courtroom, defense attorney Jeremy Bartley says he wants the trial to be held in Letcher County.
“We believe we're standing right where this case should be, a few feet from where this case should be tried.”
And one floor up where Judge Kevin Mullins was shot to death, allegedly and as shown by surveillance video, by Mickey Stines.
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