Shawn “Mickey” Stines has resigned as Letcher County sheriff and faces a murder charge. (Leslie County Detention Center)
An Eastern Kentucky sheriff charged with murdering a judge earlier in September has retired from his elected office following a request from the governor to step down.
Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines, 43, resigned effective Monday, according to a letter from Somerset attorney Jeremy Bartley to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s office.
The letter said Stines “had made the difficult decision to effect his retirement” but not as the result “of any ultimatum or in any way as a concession to any allegations” made by prosecutors.
“Rather, Sheriff Stines has made this decision to allow for a successor to continue to protect his beloved constituents while he addresses the legal process ahead of him,” Bartley wrote.
An attorney for the governor’s office had sent Stines a letter requesting he step down from his elected office by Friday, Sept. 27, or face removal through a Kentucky law.
Stines pleaded not guilty last week to a charge of murder for allegedly shooting and killing 54-year-old Letcher District Court Judge Kevin Mullins in the Letcher County courthouse.