Kentucky court denies Fayette judge's request to stop impeachment proceedings

Taylor Six, Lexington Herald-Leader on Mar 19, 2026

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A Kentucky judge has declined for a second time to intervene in impeachment proceedings of a Fayette County judge.

Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd denied a request for a temporary injunction filed by Fayette Circuit Court Judge Julie Muth Goodman, to stop ongoing impeachment proceedings in the state General Assembly from taking place.

Killian Timoney, a former Republican lawmaker seeking to win back his Lexington-area House seat this year, filed the petition against Goodman in January, arguing she had abused her office.

As the House Impeachment Committee rolled on, Goodman asked Shepherd’s court step in, saying her due process had been violated.

The judge denied the initial request for an emergency injunction to stop Monday’s hearing from taking place. At the time, he said intervening on the process would be a separation of powers issue. Shepherd said he believed that the buck would ultimately stop with the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Shepherd echoed those same statements in a ruling issued Thursday that denied intervening in the proceedings.

However, Shepherd said he did have concerns.

He said “substantial legal issues” exist in Goodman’s case, concerning her allegations that the process being followed by the House of Representatives violates her due process rights.

While he declined to intervene at this time, Shepherd could do so in the future.

Shepherd says prosecutor engaged in “forum shopping”

Different in his Thursday ruling were his comments about Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney Kim Baird, who was one of two witnesses to testify against Goodman at the Monday hearing.

During her testimony, Baird admitted she treated victims and defendants differently in Goodman’s courtroom.

Baird said she thought about submitting a complaint to the Judicial Conduct Commission, the only body authorized to remove a sitting judge by the Kentucky Constitution. However, Baird said she did not do so because of “timing,” and she didn’t feel that her evidence would rise to the level that would successfully remove Goodman from the bench.

Shepherd said Baird’s testimony and complaints were grounded in the prosecutor’s frustration that Goodman does not elect to go “with the Commonwealth’s preferred outcome in criminal cases.”

Shepherd said Baird engaged in “forum shopping” by speaking at the impeachment hearings instead of through the regular channel of the Judicial Conduct Committee.

“This is a shocking admission from the main witness against Judge Goodman, who conceded there is not enough evidence to remove Judge Goodman from office in a judicial proceeding with the due process required by ... the Constitution,” Shepherd wrote.

Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, chair of the House committee, filed a resolution March 18 to adopt the articles of impeachment. The House of Representatives will vote on the resolution, and if approved, will go to the Senate for a full trial.

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