A small, tight-knit southeast Kentucky community has been reeling after their sheriff was arrested for the killing of a prominent district judge in his chambers Thursday – spurring residents to wonder what could have triggered the shooting and prompting calls for better courthouse security.

A Kentucky sheriff is facing charges of first-degree murder after shooting and killing a local judge inside his chambers last week. Kentucky State Police say Letcher County Sheriff Shawn M. Stines shot District Judge Kevin Mullins several times following a short argument. Stines turned himself in to police without incident.

Residents of a tiny Appalachian town struggled Friday to cope with a shooting involving two of its most prominent citizens: a judge who was gunned down