Man arraigned for killing woman in Sept. head-on collision 

Published 1:41 pm Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Joseph Kelly, the man accused of hitting a Lancaster woman head-on and killing her in September, was arraigned in Boyle County Circuit Court on Tuesday.

Kelly stood before Judge Darren Peckler with his lawyer, James Lowry, and entered a not guilty plea to the charges of manslaughter in the second-degree, wanton endangerment in the first-degree and operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs and alcohol, second offense.

Kelly was accused of causing the Sept. 27 death of Linda Gill, 63. According to files of The Advocate-Messenger, he crossed the center line while traveling westbound on Perryville Road, near the Boyle County High School, striking Gil’s truck head-on.

Gill was killed instantly in the crash; her passenger, Alma Steinhauer, 46, of California, Kentucky, was treated for injuries. Kelly was transported to Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center for treatment.

According to files in the Boyle County Circuit Clerk’s Office, in Kelly’s vehicle police found “open alcoholic beverage containers in the vehicle along with (an) empty needle in the passenger side floor board.”

He remains lodged in the Boyle County Detention Center. Kelly’s next appearance will be on Jan. 2.

Other cases in court on Tuesday, which will continue at a later date, include:

• Jenna Oakley, the teenager accused of murdering her stepmother, who faces charges of complicity to commit murder and complicity of theft by unlawful taking of a car, $10,000 or more but less than $1 million. She is lodged in a juvenile detention facility and did not appear Tuesday. Her case will return for a status hearing in January, but she is not anticipated to appear.

• Donald Cocanougher, who led officers on a three-county chase in August, faces charges of first-degree fleeing or evading police in a motor vehicle, receiving stolen property under $10,000, second-degree fleeing or evading police on foot, two counts of first-degree criminal mischief and four counts of first-degree wanton endangerment against a police officer. He is lodged in the Boyle County Detention Center and will return in January.

• Ryan Hundley, a former police officer, faces charges of wanton endangerment in the first-degree, assault in the fourth-degree and terroristic threatening in the third-degree and is out on bond. According to Commonwealth’s Attorney Richie Bottom, he is expected to enter a guilty plea at 9 a.m. on Jan. 4.

• Austin McClure, who led police on a pursuit through Boyle and Lincoln counties on July 12. McClure faces charges of fleeing or evading police in a motor vehicle in the first-degree, wanton endangerment of a police officer in the first-degree, fleeing or evading police on foot in the second-degree, failure to maintain insurance in the first-degree, two counts of unlawful imprisonment in the first-degree, two counts of wanton endangerment in the first-degree and three counts of contempt of court. He is out on bond relating to a case in Lincoln County and is expected to return in January.

• Rahjon Neal, a former corrections officer at Northpoint Training Center, is accused of taking “Spice” into the facility, on July 21 while still employed there. Neal faces charges of promoting contraband in the first-degree and is out on bond. He will return in January.

• Brian Lainhart, accused of kidnapping a former girlfriend, threatening her life and cutting her with a knife as she attempted to jump from his moving vehicle. He faces charges of kidnapping with serious physical injury, assault in the first-degree, fleeing or evading police in a motor vehicle in the first-degree and wanton endangerment of a police officer in first-degree. He is lodged in the Boyle County Detention Center and his case will return in January.