A lawyer told Judge Kevin Mullins directly that Sheriff Mickey Stines was falling apart. Said he couldn't take the pressure. Said he needed a mental health evaluation. Mullins had worked with Stines for years — Stines was his bailiff before becoming sheriff. They had lunch together the day of the shooting. Hours later, Mullins was dead in his own chambers.

Both men were tied to a lawsuit alleging sexual exploitation by Stines' deputies — misconduct that allegedly occurred in Mullins' chambers. Stines gave a deposition in that case days before the killing. It was described as tense. Fifteen months later, still no official motive from prosecutors.

Former FBI Behavioral Analysis Program Chief Robin Dreeke spent decades studying how trust becomes a vulnerability. How people dismiss threats from familiar faces. How secrets between powerful people become leverage. And what happens when someone who belongs somewhere — someone with a badge, a title, years of institutional trust — becomes the threat nobody sees coming.

Today he breaks down what went wrong in Letcher County. The warning signs that were visible. The pressure dynamics that may have driven Stines to the breaking point. And why institutions keep failing to act when the danger comes from one of their own.

#MickeyStines #KevinMullins #RobinDreeke #FBI #SheriffStines #CourthouseShooting #LetherCounty #TrueCrime #BehavioralAnalysis #LawEnforcement

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This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.

Before Mickey Stines killed Kevin Mullins, both men were connected to a lawsuit alleging sexual exploitation by Stines' deputies — misconduct that allegedly occurred in Mullins' chambers. Stines gave a deposition in that case days before the shooting. It was described as "tense."

Robin Dreeke spent over twenty years at the FBI studying how entanglement between powerful people becomes dangerous. How secrets function as leverage. What happens when exposure threatens someone who's already on the edge.

This conversation examines the pressure dynamics behind the Stines killing — and asks a question nobody in an official capacity has answered: why hasn't the prosecution told us what drove this?

#MickeyStines #SheriffStines #JudgeKevinMullins #RobinDreeke #FBI #LawEnforcement #Leverage #CriminalJustice

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He had a badge. He had access. He had years of history with the man he killed. Nobody stopped Mickey Stines because nobody thought they needed to.

Retired FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke — former head of the Bureau's Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program — breaks down what this case should teach every courthouse and law enforcement agency in America. When the threat comes from someone with legitimate authority, how do you see it? When a colleague is deteriorating, what triggers action? And why do the people closest to danger so often fail to recognize it?

#MickeyStines #SheriffStines #JudgeKevinMullins #RobinDreeke #FBI #LawEnforcement #CourthouseSecurity #CriminalJustice

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Everything we covered this week on the Mickey Stines case — the recusal motion that's frozen proceedings and the systemic failures that allowed a sheriff in crisis to keep his gun.

The defense filed a motion to recuse Special Judge Christopher Cohron after discovering video footage showing him seated inches from Judge Kevin Mullins at a Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health meeting just seven days before Mullins was shot to death in his chambers. Cohron never disclosed this connection. Defense attorneys Jeremy and Kerri Bartley argue that in a case where Stines' mental state is the entire defense, this creates an appearance of bias. They point to Cohron blocking psychiatric evaluation from the bond hearing as evidence. Everything is frozen while we wait to see if Cohron steps aside or forces escalation to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

We also examined what court filings reveal about the days before the shooting. Mickey Stines spiraled publicly. He called dead relatives on his phone. Lost weight rapidly. Stopped sleeping. Displayed paranoia. His staff pushed him to see a doctor. The diagnosis was acute stress reaction. They sent him home — with his badge, his gun, and his authority untouched. Twenty-four hours later, Judge Mullins was shot nine times in his own chambers.

Former FBI Special Agent Jennifer Coffindaffer exposed the structural failures. Kentucky has no red flag law. An elected sheriff cannot be suspended by subordinates. There was no mechanism to disarm him. The civil lawsuit accuses sheriff's employees of failing to warn Mullins. Their defense: Kentucky law imposed no duty to act.

Stines has been held without bond for over fifteen months. No trial date. Prosecutors haven't announced whether they'll seek the death penalty. Civil lawsuits proceed while the murder case sits in limbo.

#MickeyStines #JudgeKevinMullins #ChristopherCohron #JenniferCoffindaffer #FBI #LetcherCounty #KentuckySheriff #JudgeRecusal #MentalHealthCrisis #WeekInReview

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Former sheriff Mickey Stines shot and killed District Judge Kevin Mullins in his own chambers. It was caught on video. But now the defense has uncovered something that could derail the entire case — and attorney Eric Faddis is here to break it down.

Video footage shows Special Judge Christopher Cohron, who was assigned to preside over the Stines trial, seated directly next to Judge Mullins at a Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health meeting. That meeting happened seven days before Mullins was killed. Cohron never disclosed this relationship to either side. Now the defense has filed a recusal motion arguing that in a case where mental illness is literally the entire defense, having a judge who worked alongside the victim on mental health issues creates an appearance of bias that cannot be ignored.

Cohron has already denied the defense's motion to unseal Stines' psychiatric evaluation. He blocked them from using it at the bond hearing, saying "a bail hearing is not a trial rehearsal." The defense is connecting those rulings to that video. Eric explains what the legal standard for recusal actually requires, why the non-disclosure matters, and what happens if the Chief Justice of Kentucky has to step in.

We also cover the Nick Reiner case, where celebrity attorney Alan Jackson just withdrew and left a public defender holding a capital murder case with thirty seconds' notice. Two insanity defenses. Two courtrooms in chaos. Eric Faddis explains what's really happening.

#MickeyStines #JudgeRecusal #ChristopherCohron #KevinMullins #NickReiner #InsanityDefense #EricFaddis #KentuckyLaw #TrueCrime #SheriffMurder

This video is for commentary and entertainment purposes only. All accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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A former sheriff accused of killing a sitting judge. A special judge assigned to preside over the case. And now, a video that ties them together in a way nobody expected.

Defense attorney and former prosecutor Eric Faddis joins us to analyze the recusal motion filed by Mickey Stines' defense team. According to court documents, Special Judge Christopher Cohron appeared in footage from a Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health meeting — seated inches from District Judge Kevin Mullins — just seven days before Mullins was shot to death in his Letcher County chambers. The defense claims Cohron never disclosed this connection and is now arguing his impartiality cannot be trusted.

This case already involves a sealed psychiatric evaluation, an insanity defense, a venue fight, and a defendant who's been held without bond for over fifteen months. The recusal motion adds another layer — one that asks a fundamental question: In a case where the victim was a judge and the defense is built entirely around mental health, can the presiding judge's undisclosed attendance at a mental health meeting with the victim be overlooked?

Eric Faddis breaks down the legal standard under Kentucky law, what happens if Cohron refuses to step aside, and how this fight could reach the Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court. We also discuss the broader implications for judicial impartiality and what this case reveals about the challenges of trying a case where everyone in the system already knows each other.

#MickeyStines #SheriffStines #JudgeKevinMullins #JudgeCohron #EricFaddis #JudicialRecusal #KentuckySheriff #LawEnforcement #CriminalJustice #CourthouseShooting

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Former Letcher County Sheriff Mickey Stines is fighting to remove the judge overseeing his murder trial — and the reason involves a video that was never supposed to surface. According to a defense motion filed December 29th, Special Judge Christopher Cohron appeared in footage from a Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health meeting held September 12th, 2024. In that video, the defense claims, Cohron sat inches from District Judge Kevin Mullins for roughly two hours. Mullins' widow was also in attendance. Seven days later, Mullins was dead — shot by Stines in his courthouse chambers.

The defense argues Cohron never disclosed this to the parties, creating what they call "an appearance of impropriety." In a case where Stines' entire defense rests on his mental state — insanity, extreme emotional disturbance, documented psychosis — having a judge with an undisclosed personal connection to the victim raises serious questions about impartiality.

Cohron has already ruled against the defense on several key motions. He denied their attempt to unseal Stines' psychiatric evaluation. He blocked them from introducing that evaluation at the upcoming bond hearing. The defense is now connecting those decisions to what they discovered in the video.

Under Kentucky law, judges must recuse themselves when their impartiality might reasonably be questioned. The Bartleys are betting this video clears that bar. If Cohron disagrees, they can escalate to the Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Stines has been jailed for fifteen months. No bond. No trial date. And now, no clarity on who will even judge this case.

#MickeyStines #SheriffStines #JudgeKevinMullins #KentuckySheriff #LawEnforcement #JudgeRecusal #LetherCounty #CourthouseShooting #CriminalJustice #TrueCrime

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