Overview
- Filed Dec. 29, the motion asks Judge Christopher Cohron to step aside from the Letcher County murder case against former sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines.
- Defense attorneys cite a Sept. 12, 2024 Judicial Commission on Mental Health video showing Cohron seated inches from District Judge Kevin Mullins for about two hours a week before the shooting.
- The motion says the contact was never disclosed, notes Mullins’ widow appears in the recording, and references a related dinner event linked to the meeting.
- Counsel plans to argue insanity and, alternatively, extreme emotional disturbance, and says Cohron kept a state mental‑health expert’s report out of a bond hearing.
- No ruling has been issued on recusal, prosecutors have described the case as a capital offense, and a recent bid to dismiss the indictment was denied earlier this month.