Kentucky shooting suspect may have had job offer

Posted 8:01AM on Thursday 18th April 2002 ( 23 years ago )

SOMERSET, KENTUCKY - One apparently wanted to eliminate a powerful political rival. Another might have wanted a job. A third may have hoped his legal troubles would disappear. Authorities said Wednesday that the three men accused in last week's sniper-style murder of Sheriff Sam Catron had different goals in mind before committing the crime. ``We believe it's all politically motivated,'' state police Detective Todd Dalton said. ``Each one of those persons had their own motivation for the murder.'' Jeff Morris, 34, wanted Catron killed to improve his own chances in the Republican primary for sheriff and may have promised gunman Danny Shelley a job, Dalton said. ``It's not uncommon to be promised a job for something like that,'' Dalton said. Shelley, 30, has pleaded innocent to murder. Morris and Kenneth White, 54, were arrested on charges of complicity to murder a police officer. White, who previously faced drug charges, wanted Morris to win the race so he'd have a sheriff who would look the other way, Dalton said. Mark Stanziano, Shelley's attorney, said Dalton is speculating about something he doesn't know. ``That's the great thing about America. Everybody has an opinion,'' Stanziano said. ``But an opinion won't stand up in court.'' It was unclear on Wednesday whether White and Morris had legal representation. On Wednesday, thousands of people, including police officers and deputies from across the state, stood in line to walk past the open casket to pay respects to the slain lawman. Michael Muse, a retired lieutenant from the Somerset Police Department, wiped tears as he left the building. He said he remembered Catron as a 12-year-old boy who hung around the police station to be near the action. ``He loved police work,'' Muse said. ``If Sam ever expected to die, he expected to die in uniform.'' Catron, 48, was seeking re-election to a fifth term when he was shot Saturday after he finished a campaign speech at a fish fry and political rally in Shopville, a tiny community about 70 miles south of Lexington. Witnesses saw a man fleeing the scene on a motorcycle, and Shelley was captured after wrecking the cycle, which was registered to Morris. Jim McWhorter, the chief deputy sworn in as sheriff hours after the shooting, said Morris was a deputy under Catron from 1996 to July 2001. Morris resigned as a result of an ``internal matter'' that McWhorter has declined to explain. White was arrested last year for possessing cocaine, a charge that was dismissed after he agreed to serve as an informant. Shelley's criminal record has a litany of traffic offenses, one arrest for alcohol intoxication and one for assault.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/4/202446