A Kentucky prosecutor was indicted last week for the murder of his wife and tampering with evidence after the fact.
Judith Dawn Deskins, 46, died from blunt force trauma on April 24, 2021. According to the indictment against Donald Kyle Deskins, a grand jury in that county determined that the former Pike County assistant prosecutor and current city attorney for Elkhorn City intended “to cause her death or under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to human life wantonly engaged in conduct which created a grave risk of death,”
The grand jury further determined that Deskins tampered with evidence both at the scene and on his laptop, the Appalachian News-Express reported.
Johnson County Commonwealth’s Attorney Tony Skeans was named a special prosecutor for the case to avoid conflict of interest. He told the News-Express that the case was not clear-cut and took some time to prepare to present to the grand jury.
“Finding the person with the skills and expertise to be able to interpret the physical evidence took forever.“ he said. “I got involved in late 2021 and it took me nearly all of 2022 to find somebody that could look at it.”
Skeans said Dr. Bill Smock, director of the Louisville Metro Police Department’s Clinical Forensic Medical Program, was the man they found for the job.
He also said that a special judge will be assigned to the case, which will handle the proceedings as a Pike County Circuit Court matter “until or unless a determination is made to change venue.”
According to the indictment, Deskins initially tampered with evidence on the day of his wife’s death and again on July 28, 2021, when he is accused of fiddling with information on his laptop before giving it to police, Law & Crime reported.
That was the same day he changed his Facebook status to say he was in a relationship with another woman. His current Facebook status lists him as single, however.
Law & Crime also noted that Deskins had previously been suspended from practice in Kentucky after admitting to mishandling a divorce case in 2012. The state Supreme Court’s 2014 ruling that suspended him and gave him a year’s probation noted that he said “he was suffering from anxiety and depression-related illnesses corresponding with certain personal and family problems during the events giving rise to this case.
Deskins was arrested last Thursday and charged with murder/domestic violence and two counts of tampering with evidence. He is being held without bond.
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[Featured image: Donald Kyle Deskins/Pike County Jail]
