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Whitesburg Mountain Eagle - 7.23.26 · Eastern Kentucky Newspapers

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Speaker 1: Now we turn to the Mountain Eagle to read news
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from Hoizberg. Your reader today is Bill Denarsdal. We will
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begin with the addition dated July twenty second, twenty twenty six,
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which the publishers have donated to a RADIOI as a reminder.
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RADIOI is a reading service intended for people who are
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blind or have other disabilities that make it difficult to
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read printed material. The first headline is Aker killers still
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await final fate forty one years later, nearly forty one
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years after University of Kentucky student Tammy d Aker was
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stabbed to death during a robbery at her physician father's
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fleming Neon home, the fate of the men convicted in
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the crime remains tied to a Kentucky death penalty system
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that has not carried out an execution in nearly two decades.
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Recent action by the Kentucky General Assembly changing the state's
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execution procedures and limiting a governor's pardon powers will have
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little immediate effect on the remaining defendants in the Acker
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case because executions remain blocked by long running court challenges
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over Kentucky's lethal injection procedures and inmate protections. The legislation
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also is unlikely to affect the pending murder case against
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former Electric County Sheriff Sean Nicky Steins, unless prosecutors eventually
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decide to seek the death penalty. Only one killer remains
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under death sentence in ackercase. One of the biggest changes
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in the Acker case came in twenty nineteen when Roger
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Dale Epperson, who was sentenced to death along with Benny
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Lee Hodge for Tammy Acker's murder, agreed to give up
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all further appeals in exchange for having his death sentence
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in the Acer case reduced to life imprisonment without the
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possibility of parole. The agreement, approved by Pike Circuit Judge
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Eddie Coleman, was supported by members of the Aker family
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and ended years of federal court litigation. It did not
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affect Epperson's separate death sentence in the June nineteen eighty
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five robbery murders of Edwin and Bessie Morris in the
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Jackson County community of Greyhawk. Hodge, now seventy four, remains
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under death sentences in both the Aker and Morris cases. Eperson,
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now seventy six, continues to serve life without parole for
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the Acker murder while remaining under a death sentence in
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the Morris case. Both men remain on death row with
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twenty two other male inmates at the Kentucky State Penitiate
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Entry at Eddyville. The third defendant, Donald Terry Bartley, now
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sixty seven, pleaded guilty after agreeing to testify against the
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other two men at their Lecture Circuit court trial. In
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return for his testimony, he received a life sentence with
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the possibility of parole after serving twenty five years. At
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his first parole hearing in November two thousand nine, the
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Kentucky Parole Board denied his request for release and ordered
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him to serve the remainder of his life sentence. Bartley
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is now housed at the medium security North Point Training
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Center near Danville. Crime shocked Eastern Kentucky the August eighth,
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nineteen eighty five robbery and murder remained among the most
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notorious crimes in Eastern Kentucky history. Authorities said the three
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men gained entry to the Fleming Neon home of doctor
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Roscoe j Aker, then seventy seven, by posing as FBI
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agents investigating one of the physician's former business associates. Once inside,
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Prosecutors said Bartley strangled doctor Aker with the cord from
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a curling iron until he lost consciousness, while Hodge repeatedly
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stabbed twenty three year old Tammy Aker with a butcher knife.
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The three men escaped with an estimated one point nine
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million dollars from a bedside safe after forcing doctor Aker
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to open it under the belief that they would spare
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his daughter's life. Arrest warrants were issued four days later
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after Kentucky State Police crime lab technicians identified fingerprints left
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inside the Acker home. FBI agents arrested the three suspects
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August fifteenth, nineteen eight, at a condominium in Ormond Beach, Florida,
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during the week after the murder. Investigators said the trio
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spent the stolen money on a new Chevrolet Corvette, four
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other expensive vehicles, jewelry, and large quantities of cocaine. The
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three men did not begin their crime spree in Lettter County. Eperson,
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who grew up in the Perry County community of jeff
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near Hazard, Bartley, who was raised in Harlan County, and Hodge,
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then living in Lake City, Tennessee now Rocky Top, had
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become partners in crime months earlier. Bartley and Eperson first
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met while serving prison sentences at the Kentucky State Reformatory
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in Lagrange. The two then met Hodge in late December
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nineteen eighty four at a Lake City bar. Hodge had
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also been released from prison recently after serving a term
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in the now closed Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee,
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famous for housing James Earl Ray after he assassinated Martin
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Luther King Junior. By the spring of nineteen eighty five,
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Eperson was talking about robbing an elderly Eastern Kentucky physician
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who he believed kept a large amount of cash at home.
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In early May, the three drove to Fleming to study
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doctor Acker's home and office while planning the robbery. On
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the drive back to Tennessee, they stopped in hazard Eperson's
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old stomping ground after concluding they would need a vehicle
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resembling one driven by FBI or IRS agents to gain
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entry into the Acker home. They then attended a used
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car auction in London looking for just such a vehicle.
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While there, Eperson recognized Bobby Morris, whose parents Edwin and
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Bessie Morris, lived in Greyhawk and were longtime family friends.
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Prosecutors later said that encounter led Eperson to suggest robbing
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the Morris first because he believed they also kept a
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large amount of cash at home. On Father's Day, June sixteenth,
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nineteen eighty five, the three men returned to Jackson County.
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After tying up and beating the elderly couple, they found
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only about three thousand dollars before shooting both victims to death.
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Prosecutors argued at trial that the Morris murders established a
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pattern showing the three men were willing to kill robbery
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victims to eliminate witnesses. Less than two months later, they
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returned to Letcher County to carry out the robbery that
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ended Tammy Acker's life. Ten months after their arrests, almost
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exactly one year after the Morris murders, a Lector Circuit
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Court jury convicted Hodge of murdering Tammy Aker. Bartley testified
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that Eperson, known to the others as Strawboss, planned the
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robbery and directed the attack. Why no executions Many Kentuckians
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are surprised to learn the Commonwealth has not carried out
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an execution since two thousand and eight, Although Kentucky still
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authorizes capital punishment executions have been delayed for years by
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litigation challenging the state's lethal injection procedures and other constitutional
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issues surrounding the execution process. SAT Built two fifty one,
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approved this year after the General Assembly overrode Governor Andy
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Bisher's veto shift's responsibility for execution procedures from state regulations
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to internal corrections cabinet policies. However, the change cannot take
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effect unless Kentucky first prevails in the long running litigation
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that has prevented executions from moving forward. Another measure, Senate
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Bill ten, asks Kentucky voters to amend the state constitution
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to prohibit governors from granting pardons or commutations during the
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final sixty days before leaving office. Even if approved this fall,
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the amendment would not take effect until September twenty twenty seven,
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and would not immediately affect inmates currently on death row.
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As a result of the lengthy court battles, many Kentucky
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death row inmates have spent decades awaiting execution. Some have
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died before the legal process could run its course. Stein's case,
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the new legendlegislation could eventually become relevant in the prosecution
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of former Electra County Sheriff Sean Mickey Steins if prosecutors
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decide to seek the death penalty. Steins has pleaded not
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guilty to charges accusing him of fatally shooting District Judge
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Kevin Mullins inside the Electra County Courthouse in September twenty
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twenty four. Defense attorneys have indicated they intend to pursue
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an extreme emotional disturbance defense and have sought extensive mental
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health evaluations. No decision has been announced on whether the
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commonwealth will seek the death penalty, and the next story
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is ex husband dies after shooting and wounding woman at
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her job. Court records show victims sought second emergency protective
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order only two days before the shooting. I am scared
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for my life. I need help. Those handwritten words written
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by Sarah Pendleton Wyatt in a sworn affidavit filed in
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the Lector District Court on July sixteenth, became part of
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the public record less than forty eight hours before authorities
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say her former husband walked into the Washboard laundromat where
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she worked and shot her multiple times. Kentucky State Police
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say Richard Wyatt, Senior, sixty two, of dry Fork fatally
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shot himself a short time later after leaving the laundromat
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with the couple's adult son, Richard Devon Wyatt Junior, twenty six,
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who was also wounded. Sarah Wyatt, fifty four, remained hospitalized Tuesday,
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after first being flown to Piko Medical Center and later
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transferred to the University of Kentucky Medical Center. According to
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Kentucky State Police, troopers were called to the washboard on
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Jenkins Road at approximately four thirty nine pm Saturday, after
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receiving a report of a shooting. Troopers from Kentucky State
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Police Post thirteen, the Whitesburg Police Department, the Letcher County
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Sheriff's Office, and emergency medical personnel responded and found Sarah
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Wyatt suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. State Police said Richard
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Wyatt Senior left the scene with Richard Devon Wyatt Junior,
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twenty six, and drove to the backyard another residence on
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Tunnel Hill and killed himself, the bullet passing through his
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head and hitting his adult son in the shoulder. Police
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said the younger Wyatt then drove himself to the nearby
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Witchburg Hospital before being transferred to pikevill Medical Center. He
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was released Sunday. Richard Wyatt, SNI was pronounced dead at
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the scene by the Letcher County Coroner's Office. Police said
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they still don't know why Richard Wyatt Junior was with
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his father when Sarah Wyatt was shot. Kentucky State Police
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Detective Nathan Rourke is leading the investigation. Divorce finalized in May.
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Court records reviewed by The Mountain Eagle show Sarah Wyatt
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filed for divorce March tenth. Lecter Circuit Judge James W.
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Craft dissolved the marriage May twentieth. The court records also
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show Sarah Wyatt sought two emergency protective orders against Richard
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Wyatt this month. The first EPO came on July third,
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when Sarah Wyatt signed an affidavit saying her ex husband
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had threatened me, saying he will kill me and himself
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numerous times in the past few weeks. He has called
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me names, wished I would die. She told Whitesburd police
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she was scared of him, writing I do not know
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what he is capable of. She also expressed fear that
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he would hurt himself and that he had called her
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dozens of times, threatening her life to day when he
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came to my work after a confrontation with a friend
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I was talking to. I came in to help him
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clean up, and he looked me dead in the eye
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and said he will kill me now. The EPO says
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Sarah Wyatt also told the court she was afraid telling
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Richard Wyatt the divorce had been finalized would push him
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over the age. Second petition filed after court house confrontation.
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On July sixteenth, Sarah Wyatt asked the court to dismiss
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the first emergency protective order. Later that same day, however,
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she returned to court and filed another petition. In that
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handwritten affidavit, she alleged Richard Wyatt confronted her after she
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left the courthouse and threatened to kill her unless she
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returned to tell the judge she had made a mistake
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by divorcing him. I asked for another EPO because he
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threatened me he would kill me, she wrote. I am
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scared for my life. I need help. After I left
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the courthouse, he came straight and threatened to kill me
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if I didn't go to tell the judge I made
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a mistake on divorcing him. The affidavit for the protection
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order says Sarah Wyatt also told the court she had
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recordings on her telephone and that she feared Richard Wyatt
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would kill himself. The second emergency protective order directed Richard
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Wyatt not to commit domestic violence or abuse, not to
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stalk Sarah Wyatt, and not to go to the washboard Launderman.
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The order also granted Sarah Wyatt's request for a police
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escort to her apartment after the court noted allegations that
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Richard Wyatt was stalking her apartment waiting for her to
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come home. Court records indicate the second emergency protective order
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had not yet been served when the shooting occurred Saturday afternoon.
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Trooper recognized suspect's name. Kentucky State Police dispatch recordings indicate
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one trooper immediately recognized the suspect's name after the initial
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report from the laundermat. The trooper told dispatch it sounded
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like Ricky Wyatt and said he was heading toward Wyatt's residence.
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When another trooper asked whether dispatch meant the old one
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or the young one, the trooper replied he believed it
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was the father because his wife works there. Police later
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found Sarah Wyatt lying inside the Laundermat with three gunshot
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wounds to the abdomen. Authorities said Richard Wyatt Senior drove
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to another residence on Jenkins Road, where investigators believe some
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type of struggle occurred before he fatally shot himself. Police
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said the same bullet also struck Richard Devin Wyatt Junior
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difficult months before shooting. Court records indicate Sarah Wyatt had
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experienced a series of personal and financial setbacks during the
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months leading up to Saturday's shooting. In January, she created
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a gofund Me page seeking help moving a mobile home
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after learning the property where it sat had been sold.
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I never imagined I would be in a position where
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I needed to ask for help, especially since I've always
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tried to be the one helping others, she wrote. Life
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can be unpredictable, and right now I'm facing a situation
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that leaves me with no other choice why. It explained
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she hoped eventually to own the trailer through a rent
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to own agreement, but learned she would have to move
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it after the property changed hands. The new owner offered
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to give her the trailer if she could move it,
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but told her she had to relocate. In June, the
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landlord filed an eviction action against her in court, and
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it was scheduled to go to trial Thursday. It was
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not clear whether the landlord attempting to evict her is
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the same one on whose land the trailer had been located.
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The fundraiser sought one thousand dollars, but raised only two
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hundred dollars. Kentucky State Police said the investigation remains ongoing.
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The next story is County orders two year halt on
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data centers, environmental impact studies to be required before future
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projects could proceed here. Respond Unding to concerns raised by
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residents over a proposed natural gas fired power plant intended
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to attract artificial intelligence data centers, the Letter Fiscal Court
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voted unanimously Monday to place a two year moratorium on
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the construction of new data centers in the county and
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to require environmental impact studies before any future projects could
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move forward. The action came after nearly two hours of
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public comments, during which residents expressed concerns about water use,
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noise pollution, wildlife, tourism, and the potential impact on nearby
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neighborhoods if a power plant and data centers are eventually
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built At the Gateway Regional Business Park near Jenkins. Although
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the court approved the moratorium unanimously, officials acknowledged that many
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details surrounding the proposal remain unknown. Judge Executive Tis Gerry
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Adams said county officials learned about the proposal only after
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documents became public through an Open Records Act request. You
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found out about the proposal at the same time we did,
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Adams told those attending the meeting, it was not disclosed
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to any of the mayors, myself, or any of the
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other judges. Adams explained that the Appalachian Industrial Authority, which
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owns the Gateway Regional Business Park, is governed by representatives
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appointed by the county judges of Letcher, not Floyd and
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Pike Counties. He said those board members frequently signed confidentiality
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agreements while negotiating with prospective industries, and that neither he
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nor other elected officials had prior knowledge of the proposed
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power plant or its connection to data centers. The proposal
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became public last week after the citizens group Creeks Don't
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Rise obtained documents through the Kentucky Open Records Act showing
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that Diversified Energy and its partners requested an option on
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approximately one hundred acres within the Gateway Regional Business Park
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through one East Kentucky, a regional Economic development organization. According
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to those documents, the proposed natural gas fired power plant
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would be built specifically to attract artificial intelligence data centers.
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Exactly how the county's moratorium will be implemented remains unclear.
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Letcher County has no zoning ordinance, comprehensive plan, or countywide
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building permit system, although it does regulate development in floodplain areas.
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Residents voice concerns. Nine citizens addressed the fiscal court. Eight
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opposed the proposed data center development, while one spoke in favor.
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Elaine Tanner urged county officials to appoint representatives who would
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keep local leaders informed about major industrial proposals. She also
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cited reports involving diversified energy gas wells in West Virginia
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and questioned whether similar issues could occur here. We don't
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want that here, she said. Tanner also argued that data
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centers would create relatively few jobs while producing enough noise
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and other impacts to effect nearby residents, including those in
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the Grand View subdivision now under construction. Doctor Gary Wine,
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a retired university professor, told the court that water consumption
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could become one of the project's greatest challenges. Wine said
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even a relatively small data center can require approximately eighteen
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thousand gallons of water per day for cooling, while larger
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facilities may use hundreds of thousands of gallons daily. He
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questioned whether the Jenkins water system could meet that demand
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and expressed concern about water discharged from cooling systems. He
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also questioned how emergency responders would handle a fire involving
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diesel fuel or lithium batteries. Who's going to put it out? Lyon, asked.
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Retired college professor Beverly Collins expressed concerns about noise, light pollution,
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water quality, and heat generated by large industrial facilities. She
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said such projects can create heat islands, rays, surrounding temperatures,
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and negatively affect tourism, particularly with a resort planned a
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top pine mountain overlooking the proposed site. Collins also said
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the low frequency sound produced by data centers can travel
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long distances and drive wildlife away from the area. Wesley
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Bryant compared the proposed development to the early coal boom,
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arguing that eastern Kentucky should avoid another industry that extracts
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resources while providing relatively little long term benefit to local residents.
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I don't want our county to become a giant utility
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park for outside corporations while our people struggled to find
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affordable housing, Bryant said. Independent congressional candidate Michael Wine emphasized
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that the purpose of the meeting was not to criticize
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county officials, but to encourage additional study before any decisions
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are made. The goal here is for us to come
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together as a community and find the best way to
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move forward, he said, asking the court to adopt a
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two year moratorium similar to one approved in Bell County.
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Gary Johnson, a Pipe County native and Louisiana State University
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linguistics professor who is developing a vineyard near the proposed site,
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expressed concern about noise and its possible impact on nearby
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residents and agriculture. Former Jenkins mayor G. C. Kinser questioned
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whether local water systems could adequately treat wastewater associated with
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a data center. One speaker supports proposal. The only citizen
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to speak in favor of the proposal was Forrest Madden,
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whose family owns a coal testing laboratory. At ISOM. Madden,
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who described himself as a certified artificial intelligence trainer, said
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advances in engineering have addressed many of the concerns raised
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during the meeting. He said many newer data centers use
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closed loop cooling systems that require less water and produce
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less wastewater than older facilities. Madden also argued that although
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data centers employed relatively few workers directly, they still generate
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economic activity through houses, restaurants, gasoline sales, and other local spending.
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Kayla Coots said she lives within a mile of the
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industrial site and fears a data center would make the
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area unlivable because of light and noise. If a data
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center is going to come in, I'm probably going to
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move out, she said. She also read a letter from
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Blacky resident Seth Lewis, who urged the Fiscal Court to
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reject the proposal and promised continued peaceful opposition if it
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moves forward. Court members call for more information after public
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comments concluded. Adams said many important questions about the proposal
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remain unanswered. He said he supports delaying any data center
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construction until county officials and the public have a clearer
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understanding of both the potential benefits and possible risks. He
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also supported requiring environment mental impact studies before any future
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proposals proceed. Magistrate deb Collier questioned whether the county's action
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would also apply within the City of Jenkins. Adams said
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he believed it would. Magistrate Chady Smith said he had
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known very little about data centers before receiving a telephone
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call Friday, but thanked residents for educating the court. You
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all have educated me a lot more than I was,
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Smith said. Magistrates Jack Banks and Kenny Anderson also said
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they believe additional information is needed before the county considers
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such development. Anderson identified water use as his primary concern.
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Collier then made the motion to approve a two year
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moratorium on new data centers, along with a requirement that
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future proposals undergo environmental impact studies. The motion passed unanimously.
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This concludes the reading of The Mountain Eagle. Your reader
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has been Bill den Arsdale. Now please stay tuned for
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continued programming on behalf of everyone here at Radio I
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thank you for listening, and have a good day.