CITIZEN STAFF REPORT

WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — A Mingo County man facing murder charges in the shooting death of a West Virginia State Police trooper is requesting his trial be moved out of Mingo County.

Timothy Kennedy, 29, of  Matewan, pleaded not guilty during a formal arraignment Friday in Mingo County Circuit Court.

Judge Joshua Butcher of Logan County, appointed to preside in the case, set Kennedy’s trial date for June 2.

During the hearing Friday, Kennedy’s defense attorney indicated he had filed a motion the previous day requesting a change of venue. The judge had not seen the motion and made no ruling but set a pretrial hearing for March 6.

Kennedy was formally indicted Jan. 23 by a Mingo County grand for the killing of Sgt. Cory Maynard of the West Virginia State Police.

Maynard was shot June 2, 2023, when he and other law enforcement responded to a call of a shooting in the Beech Creek area of Matewan. As they approached the house, Maynard was shot twice with a 30/30 rifle in an ambush.

Kennedy took Maynard’s gun and fled the scene but was arrested around 10:30 p.m. after an intense manhunt. He was arraigned the following day via video for Maynard’s murder and the wounding of Benjamin Baldwin of Matewan, the shooting that prompted the original call.

The indictment against Kennedy formally charges him with first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, disarming a law enforcement officer, and two counts of attempted murder.

Mingo County Circuit Judge Miki Thompson denied Kennedy’s request for bond Nov. 14, 2023.