Archive for the 'Campbell County High' Category

Campbell County High gunman’s guilty plea thrown out

Kenny Bartley

It seems that the supporters of Kenny Bartley finally got a judge sympathetic to their cause. After many attempts a judge has thrown out Bartley’s guilty plea which earned him a 45 year sentence.

In 2005 a then 15-year-old Bartley shot and killed Assistant Principal Ken Bruce and wounded Principal Gary Seale and Assistant Principal Jim Pierce in the offices of Campbell County High in Tennessee.

A now 19-year-old Bartley testified to the following about accepting his plea deal…

“Once I realized what I had truly got myself into, I didn’t want to do it. I felt pressured into doing it. I was so nervous and scared I didn’t know what else to do. I put my trust in my lawyer and he let me down.”

More than likely the real reason he testified to that he is just trying to get out of his murder conviction.

In my opinion he’s better off sticking with the deal since if he’s convicted at trial he’s looking at life without parole if memory serves me correctly.

He’s probably gambling on a jury that would be sympathetic to the ‘juvenile brains aren’t formed fully’ crowd in order to get a lighter sentence but in my memory I can’t think of one murder case that I’ve posted about where that worked.

Bartley plea appeal denied

TN Supreme Court says no to Campbell Co. school shooting appeal:

The Tennessee Supreme Court has declined to hear the appeal of Kenny Bartley. If you’ll recall Bartley opened fire in Campbell County High School in Tennessee. He ended up wounding two and killing Assistant Principal Ken Bruce.

Bartley entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to a very long stint in prison which didn’t sit well with a lot of teeth gnashers since Bartley was a juvenile at the time.

Bartley appealed his plea to the The Court of Criminal Appeals and they said the plea was valid.

Now the Tennessee Supreme Court said that they will not hear the appeal.

Meanwhile Ken Bruce has filed no appeals against his murder. Oh that’s right. He can’t. He’s dead.

Bartley attorney petitions State Supreme Court

Campbell Co. school shooting case waiting on Supreme Court decision:

The attorney for Kenny Bartley is petitioning the Tennessee Supreme Court to hear an appeal of his client’s sentence.

Bartley pleaded guilty to felony murder for shooting and killing Campbell County High School Assistant Principal Ken Bruce. He was 14 at the time and was charged as an adult and was sentenced to 45 years.

Attorney Bruce Poston is arguing that Bartley’s previous attorney did not explain the terms of the plea deal well enough to his client. The Tennessee Court of Appeals upheld the sentence back in May.

Don’t you just love that Bartley keeps getting a crack at his sentence yet no one can appeal the death of Ken Bruce.

Bartley pleads not guilty

Kenneth Bartley pleads not guilty in Campbell County school shootings:

How does this make any sense?

A 14-year-old boy on Friday pleaded innocent in the killing of a high school administrator and the wounding of two others in November.

Kenneth Bartley stood quietly with his head down during an arraignment in Campbell County Criminal Court at Jacksboro. Defense attorney Mike Hatmaker told Judge Shayne Sexton that Bartley was pleading innocent to a seven-count indictment that included first-degree murder.

He shot 3 people, killing one, in front of witnesses and he pleads not guilty? I smell an insanity defense coming.

Bartley indicted

Kenneth Bartley indicted in Campbell County school shootings:

It’s been a while since we’ve had any news about the Campbell County High shooting but yesterday a grand jury handed down an indictment against the 14-year-old shooter Kenny Bartley Jr…

The indictment accuses Kenneth Bartley of first-degree murder in the shooting of Assistant Principal Ken Bruce after being called to the office at Campbell County Comprehensive High School.

In the indictment he is also charged with another count of felony murder of Bruce while committing attempted murder on the other two men injured, Principal Gary Seale and Assistant Principal Jim Pierce.

Bartley is charged as an adult but not eligible for the death penalty.

Bartley to be tried as an adult

Bartley to be tried as adult for school shootings:

Ken Bartley Jr., the gunman in the Campbell County High shooting that killed one and wounded two more, will be tried as an adult…

Kenny Bartley, Jr. was scheduled for a transfer hearing Wednesday to determine whether he would be tried as an adult.

However, Bartley’s attorney, Mike Hatmaker, waived the hearing. He told the judge there was no need to re-live the events of the shootings and waiving the hearing was best for Bartley and his family, since it was likely the state would have won.

The state had no objection so the judge ordered the transfer.

Ken Bartley’s dad indicted

LaFollette mayor charged with gambling:

How’s this for an interesting story? Kenny Michael Bartley, the father of Campbell County High School shooter Kenneth Bartley Jr., was indicted in an illegal gambling scheme along with the mayor of LaFollette, Tenn. I guess the criminal apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree.

Bartley Hearing Postponed

Court appearance for school shooting suspect postponed:

The hearing for Kenny Bartley, the Campbell County, Tenn. teen charged with shooting three school administrators and killing one, which could have determined if he would be tried as an adult or not has been postponed. According to the article the hearing was postponed because Bartley’s psychological profile was not complete. The new hearing will begin March 30th.

Bartley hearing tomorrow

Bartley transfer hearing on Tuesday:

Kenny Bartley, the teen accused of shooting three administrators and killing one at Campbell County High School, will be in court tomorrow which could determine if he will be tried as an adult or not.

“Under Tennessee law there are certain crimes where a juvenile can be transferred, or placed in the adult justice system. Obviously, homicide or attempted murder would be one of those. A juvenile judge has to look at certain criteria such as the seriousness of the offense.”

Does it get much more serious than murder? If he is tried as a juvenile then there will be no justice for the victims.

Campbell County Victims Update II

School shooting victim was burglary victim on the same day:

Back in November I posted an entry about Campbell County High shooting survivor Jim Pierce and how his house was robbed on the day he was shot by Ken Bartley. An ATV, a rifle, an air compressor and several tools were stolen. Yesterday the ATV was found but no arrests have been made.

The article also states that Ken Bartley is due back in court at the end of the month and that Pierce and Principal Gary Seale went back to work last week.



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