Stines had been deposed in the suit just three days prior to the shooting. 

“This civil suit had drawn a lot of attention to things that were happening in the courthouse,” Bartley said. “And in fact, if you look at it, it was because of this lawsuit – the reason that there had been a camera placed in the judge’s chambers, which is highly unusual, highly unusual to have such concern that the administrative office of courts puts a security camera in a judge’s chambers.” 

Bartley said that Stines was under pressure by his peers not to say too much during the proceedings in the civil lawsuit.

“I think one of the big things is that my client felt there had been pressure placed on him not to say too much during the deposition, and not to talk about things that happened within the courthouse, particularly in the judge’s chambers,” he said. 

Former Letcher County Ky. Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines looks over at the prosecutors during his arraignment at the Morgan County Courthouse in West Liberty, Ky., Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. Stines is accused of killing District Judge Kevin Mullins. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

“On the day that this [shooting] happened, my client had attempted multiple times to contact his wife and daughter, and he firmly believed that they were in danger,” Bartley said. “He believed that they were in danger because of what he knew to have happened within the courthouse. And there was pressure, and there were threats made to him to sort of keep him in line, to keep them from saying more than these folks wanted him to say.”

According to Bartley, Mullins and Stines were not particularly good friends, contrary to popular belief, though they’d known each other for quite a long time. 

“I don’t think that you would find on any given weekend, the judge and my client hanging out socially,” he said. “I think that their relationship was centered pretty much solely on their profession.”

Stines has been charged with one count of first-degree murder of a public official. Bartley has said the alleged killing occurred in the heat of the moment and was not premeditated. He is planning an insanity defense for Stines. 

Prosecuting attorney Jackie Steele did not return a comment request.