A close-knit community is divided following the shocking revelation that a sheriff shot dead his close friend of 20 years, a beloved district judge, after “finding a number stored in his cell phone.”
During a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, the public got its first glimpse of a motive for the Sept. 19 tragedy, learning that the shooting occurred seconds after Lechter County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines, 43, discovered the number of his daughter was stored in Judge Kevin’s court. Mullin’s phone.
CCTV footage showed Stines firing eight shots at Mullins at close range as he cowered under his desk in the corner of the room.
But his attorney asked lead investigator Clayton Stamper about the moments immediately preceding those images, suggesting they revealed the pivotal moment when the two men’s friendship broke down.
The defense asked, “How long after he looked at the cell phone and got up did this happen?”
“Just a few seconds,” Stamper revealed.
In the aftermath of the shooting, Mullins’ wife Kimberly shared a devastating tribute to her husband
The court heard Stines found his daughter’s number in Mullins’ phone and tried to call his daughter from the judge’s phone
Both men were well-liked and respected within the small community of Whitesburg, which has a population of just under 1,800.
Locals were stunned by the incident, as the duo had been colleagues and friends for nearly two decades and often had lunch during the week at the popular Streetside Grill & Bar on Main Street.
They were together at the restaurant several hours before the shooting and, according to witnesses who spoke to DailyMail.com, everything seemed normal.
But toward the end of lunch, there was one moment that indicated something was wrong. One of the other guests heard Mullins ask Stines, “Should we meet privately in my room?”
The defense will argue that there was no intent for the shooting to occur and that it was merely spurred on by the contents of Mullins’ phone.
Judge Mullins was well-liked and respected within the small community of Whitesburg, which has a population of just under 1,800
The sheriff wiped his eyes as he listened to the testimony Tuesday
Stamper said the cellphones involved in the case are currently being scanned and downloaded by forensics, but revealed he “hopes to learn” what exactly was open on Mullins’ phone at the time of the shooting.
The court heard that investigators did not collect ‘any evidence’ [to suggest] this shooting was pre-planned.”
The defense asked, “Are you aware of anything so far in your investigation that would tell us there was trouble at lunch?”
Stamper said, “No.”
Although the judge ruled there was probable cause to present the murder charge – to which Stines has pleaded not guilty – to a grand jury, the defense argued otherwise.
“I think they first determined the probable cause of manslaughter, not murder,” the court heard.
“I have not heard anything to indicate that this is not an example of extreme emotional disturbance related to the phone.”
In the chilling footage played in the opening minutes of his preliminary hearing on Tuesday, Stines shot Mullins, 54, repeatedly as he sat at his desk.
Mullins tried to cower behind the desk and chair in the corner of the room as Stines continued shooting, before eventually walking out of the room.
Mullins was appointed judge in the state’s 47th District in 2009 under former Gov. Steve Beshear
In the aftermath of the shooting, Mullins’ wife Kimberly shared a devastating tribute to her husband.
“Proud to be the wife of this irreplaceable man,” she wrote.
‘Kevin meant a lot to a lot of people. But he was everything to me and my girls.”
Her tribute sparked an outpouring of love and support from people in the community who also mourned the judge’s shocking death.
One mourner said: ‘You were everything to him. There will never be anyone else more passionate about this province and the people who live in it.”
But Stines was also a well-known and respected authority in the community, and there are many more people eagerly awaiting a future trial to find out what prompted his outburst.
“Mickey Stines was clearly not a corrupt sheriff,” said one local resident.
Before Stines got the sheriff’s job in 2018, he was a judicial officer at Mullins District Court for many years.