The judge in the murder case of former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines has denied the defense's request that he recuse himself.
The defense team for Stines filed a motion in January for Circuit Court Judge Christopher Cohron to recuse himself from overseeing the trial.
Stines is charged with the murder of Letcher County Judge Kevin Mullins. The ex-sheriff admitted to shooting Mullins in his chambers in 2024.
The defense argued that Cohron may have personal ties to the case, which could influence his impartiality in ruling. A video from a state legislature meeting on mental health shows Cohron and Mullins sitting together a week before the shooting.
In his order, Cohron said he “has no personal bias or prejudice concerning a party, and there are no surrounding facts and circumstances upon which an objective observer might reasonably question is impartial.”
Mullins and Cohron both served on the Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health.
Cohron closed the order with the following:
“Lastly, the defendant complains that the undersigned did not disclose to the parties that the undersigned and Judge Mullins were both in attendance at the KJCMH meeting, despite the close connection in time to Judge Mullins being shot by the defendant. Rule 2.11 Commentary advises that "[a] judge should disclose on the record information that the judge believes the parties or their lawyers might reasonably consider relevant to a possible motion for disqualification, even if the judge believes there is no basis for disqualification." I fully believe that sharing no more than the same area at a professional meeting, with dozens of other individuals in attendance, no one would reasonably consider it relevant to a possible motion for disqualification.”
Stines’ lawyers are pursuing an insanity defense, arguing he “lacked the capacity to intend” to shoot Mullins.
