Former Letcher County, Kentucky Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines pleaded not guilty on Monday in the murder of District Court Judge Kevin Mullins in the same courthouse where the lawman opened fire upon the jurist in September.

Attorney Jeremy Bartley said Monday that Stines has a “compelling defense” lined up to justify the shooting of his longtime colleague in his office, the Courier-Journal reported.

The timing of the sheriff’s deposition in a sex abuse-related lawsuit earlier that month is “certainly something that’s going to be crucial in this case,” Bartley added, according to the newspaper.

“I do believe that that is a piece,” Bartley said after Monday’s court proceedings, which lasted about five minutes. “This is a large story. It’s a story that, in some ways, is difficult to tell. We look forward to sharing a more complete version of that as we go through this judicial process.”

SHERIFF ALLEGEDLY GUNS DOWN JUDGE IN HIS OWN CHAMBER IN EXECUTION CAUGHT ON VIDEO; INDICTMENT RETURNED

Prosecuting Attorney Jackie Steele declined to comment when asked if he thought the deposition factored into the shooting, but said that he does not expect Stines to face any additional charges beyond murder of a public official. He told the outlet that it is still too early to know whether he plans to pursue the death penalty in the case.

The lawsuit in question was filed by two women, one of whom alleged that Letcher County deputy Ben Fields forced her to perform sexual favors inside the same judge’s chambers where the shooting took place, where there were no cameras. The woman, who was on house arrest, accused the deputy of repeatedly sexually assaulting her for six months in exchange for staying out of jail. 

Stines was accused in the suit of “deliberate indifference in failing to adequately train and supervise” Fields, who was convicted on state charges and spent several months in jail. That litigation is pending. 

Attorneys for the plaintiffs in that case said Stines’ deposition lasted several hours, and that they were surprised by the shooting, according to the Courier-Journal.

Ned Pillersdorf, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiff, told the outlet that he’s heard varying opinions on whether the deposition is connected to the Sept. 19 shooting. His co-counsel took the deposition, he said, and recalled that Stines had an “odd demeanor” throughout.

KENTUCKY SHERIFF CHARGED IN JUDGE’S MURDER DID NOT PLAN KILLING, CAUGHT IN ‘HEAT OF PASSION’: LAWYER

Former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines can be seen pointing his gun at District Court Judge Kevin Mullins. (Letcher County Handout)

Stines was denied bond on Monday. Bartley said they planned to file a motion for adversarial bond, but told the outlet that it was “unlikely” to be successful. 

Retired Judge Julia H. Adams, who was appointed to serve as special judge in Stines’ case, told the outlet that she decided not to grant the former sheriff bond after “significant consideration,” citing the capital offense charge as a key factor in her decision.

Defense attorney Jeremy Bartley asked questions of KSP Detective Clayton Stamper at Shawn “Mickey” Stines preliminary hearing at Morgan County District Court. Oct. 1, 2024 (Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Stines pleaded not guilty on Sept. 25. He formally resigned as sheriff at the end of September after receiving a letter from Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Kentucky General Counsel S. Travis Mayo urging him to do so. He is being held two counties away at Leslie County Jail, police said.

It is still unclear what motivated the former sheriff to pull the trigger. 

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District Judge Kevin Mullins, 54, was killed by Letcher County Sheriff Shawn M. Stines, 43, in his judge’s chambers, authorities said. (Kentucky Court of Justice ;Letcher County Sheriff’s Office)

Kentucky State Police Det. Clayton Stamper testified at the preliminary hearing that the two men had eaten lunch together with a group in the hours before the shooting, the Courier-Journal reported. 

According to Stamper, Stines attempted to call his daughter on his own phone, then on Mullins’ phone.

“Our investigators seized the two cellphones, and they’re being analyzed,” Kentucky State Police Trooper Matt Gayheart previously told the Daily Mail.

“I was told that the judge made a statement to Mickey about, ‘Do we need to meet private in my chambers?’” Stamper testified, The Associated Press reported.

NEW VIDEO SHOWS KENTUCKY SHERIFF POINTING GUN AT JUDGE BEFORE ALLEGED FATAL SHOOTING

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)

“It could be, but I don’t know that for a fact,” Stamper said when asked whether Stines was motivated to shoot Mullins based on what he saw on the judge’s phone.

“I talked to him, but he didn’t say nothing about why this had happened,” Stamper said, according to the AP. “But he was calm… Basically, all he said was, ‘Treat me fair.’”

When Stines was taken into custody, he allegedly told another officer, “they’re trying to kidnap my wife and kid,” Stamper said.

Bartley previously told People that the shooting “was not something that was planned and occurred in the heat of passion.”

“For us, the highest level of culpability should be manslaughter based on the partial defense of extreme emotional disturbance,” Bartley said.

The shooting in the city of Whitesburg has shaken the community of Letcher County, Kentucky, where Stines served as a bailiff in Mullins’ court before becoming sheriff in 2018. 

“We’re all in a state of shock over it,” Garnard Kincer Jr., Mullins’ friend and former mayor of Jenkins, told People. “It practically immobilized us. We just can’t believe it happened.”

The Biden administration is seeking to hand out a multi-billion dollar federal loan to fund a large scale electric vehicle manufacturing plant just months before the president’s term ends.

The Department of Energy announced on Monday that they will be giving Rivian Automotive, an EV manufacturer, a $6.57 billion loan to finance construction of a 9 million-square-foot electric vehicle facility in Georgia, called Project Horizon.

The DOE said that the initiative “supports the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal that half of all new vehicles sold in 2030 be zero-emissions,” an EV target likely to be tossed out by the incoming administration under President-elect Donald Trump.

The conditional commitment comes as President Joe Biden has been dishing out billions of dollars to fund climate-related initiatives around the country to cement his legacy on the issue during the final months of his presidency.

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If the deal is finalized, the DOE anticipates the facility in Stanton Springs North, Georgia could produce up to 400,000 mass-market electric SUVs and crossover vehicles.

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However, before it is finalized, the company must satisfy certain technical, legal, environmental and financial conditions before the financing documents can be signed, according to the DOE.

This means the White House only has two months to finalize the deal before the Trump administration steps in and could derail any plans that don’t align with its agenda.

R1T trucks on the assembly line at the Rivian electric vehicle plant on April 11, 2022. (Brian Cassella)

The funds will come from the Biden administration’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) and include $5.975 billion of principal and $592 million of capitalized interest, according to a press release announcing the loan.

“Today’s announcement reinforces the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to strengthen the nation’s manufacturing competitiveness, helping ensure American businesses remain global leaders in the rapidly expanding EV industry,” the DOE said in a press release announcing the project.

Florida authorities recently announced the recovery of several centuries-old gold coins stolen in 2015.

In a press release published Tuesday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) explained that 37 coins were recovered with the help of the FBI. The coins are worth a combined $1 million.

The coins date back to the 1715 Treasure Fleet. Several ships in two different Spanish fleets were lost in a hurricane in July 1715, causing their treasure to sink to the bottom of the ocean.

Exactly 300 years later, in 2015, a treasure trove of 101 gold coins was discovered off Florida’s Treasure Coast by the Schmitt family. The family operated an LLC called 1715 Fleet – Queens Jewels.

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But while 51 coins were accounted for, the others were not. which is considered stealing.

“While 51 of these coins were reported correctly and adjudicated, 50 coins were not disclosed and were subsequently stolen,” the FWC noted.

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Florida officials say that over 50 coins were stolen. (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)

Earlier this summer, the FWC began working with the FBI to investigate Eric Schmitt, who the FWC says is linked to “the illegal sale of multiple stolen gold coins between 2023 and 2024.”

“Investigators executed multiple search warrants, recovering coins from private residences, safe deposit boxes and auctions,” the press release noted. “Five stolen coins were reclaimed from a Florida-based auctioneer, who unknowingly purchased them from Eric Schmitt.”

The coins originated from the 1715 Treasure Fleet. (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)

“Advanced digital forensics identified metadata and geolocation data linking Eric Schmitt to a photograph of the stolen coins taken at the Schmitt family condominium in Fort Pierce,” the statement added.

The FWC also said that Schmitt took three stolen gold coins and placed them in the ocean in 2016, “to be found by the new investors of 1715 Fleet – Queens Jewels, LLC”

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The FWC linked the stolen coins to Eric Schmitt, who is believed to have illegally trafficked them. (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission )

While 37 of the coins have been recovered, 13 are still unaccounted for. The FWC said that the recovery of the coins “marks a major milestone in a long-standing investigation into the theft and illegal trafficking of these priceless historical artifacts.

“We are grateful to our investigative teams, law enforcement partners and the experts who contributed to this groundbreaking case.”