Prosecutors Start To Pile On Steve Nunn, Including Allegations Of Child Porn And Gun Powder Residue In Alleged Get Away Car.
Police: Nunn had child porn on hard drive
By Stephenie Steitzer
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Former state Rep. Steve Nunn had pornographic images of girls between the ages of 10 and 12 on a hard drive recovered after his ex-fiancee was found murdered last fall, a Lexington police detective said Thursday.
The external hard drive was found in a box that Nunn, 57, had asked a friend to hide for him the night before the killing, according to testimony during a hearing in Fayette Circuit Court.
The hearing was held to determine whether police and prosecutors can continue searching the hard drive.
No decision was made, and Judge Pamela Goodwine set a second hearing for Aug. 16.
Nunn, who is being held in the Fayette County jail, waived his right to appear Thursday. He faces the death penalty in the shooting death of his ex-fiancee, Amanda Ross, 29, of Lexington.
Ross was found shot outside her townhouse the morning of Sept. 11, 2009.
A friend of Nunn's, Johnny Hutchison of Glasgow, testified that Nunn had called him the night of Sept. 10 and told him he wanted to drop off packages at Hutchison's house.
Hutchison, who wasn't home at the time, said he told Nunn to put them in his unlocked car.
Nunn said he would pick the items up later, Hutchison testified. Nunn didn't tell him what was in the package or why he wanted Hutchison to store it in his basement, he said.
After learning about Ross' murder, Hutchison testified that he called an attorney to determine what he should do with the box and vase that Nunn had dropped off. Hutchison said he then contacted Barren County Sheriff Chris Eaton, who came to his home to retrieve the items.
Eaton testified that he opened the box at the sheriff's office to make sure there was nothing dangerous in it. After seeing a photo album, external hard drive and loose photographs of naked women, some of whom he recognized, he said he closed the box and contacted Lexington police.
"It was embarrassing," he said.
Betti Neimi, one of Nunn's attorneys, repeatedly asked why Eaton did not obtain a search warrant before opening the box.
He testified that, since he only opened the box to make sure there was nothing dangerous inside, he didn't think he needed one.
Lexington police detective David Hester, who specializes in child pornography investigations, said he identified images of young girls during a computer forensics search of the hard drive.
Lexington police detective Todd Iddings said police and prosecutors stopped searching the hard drive after seeing the images.
Prosecutors filed a motion in April asking for permission to search the hard drive. Attorneys for Nunn argued in their response that police had no legal right to begin the investigation of the hard drive and that Lexington police and Eaton had no right to search the box.
Also during Thursday's hearing, Iddings testified that he found a file in the car Nunn was driving the day of the murder that contained nude and semi-nude photographs of Ross and stationery from his 2003 campaign for governor.
A derogatory phrase was written on the manila folder, he said.
Iddings also said lab results returned in March found gun residue on the steering wheel and gear shaft of the black Honda Nunn was driving the day of the murder.
He said a vehicle resembling the one Nunn was driving is identified in video surveillance footage from an elementary school near Ross's townhouse just a few minutes after someone had called 911 the day of the shooting.
Defense attorneys and prosecutors declined comment after the hearing.
Ross' mother, Diana Ross, also declined to comment. She and several family members and friends attended the hearing.
By Stephenie Steitzer
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Former state Rep. Steve Nunn had pornographic images of girls between the ages of 10 and 12 on a hard drive recovered after his ex-fiancee was found murdered last fall, a Lexington police detective said Thursday.
The external hard drive was found in a box that Nunn, 57, had asked a friend to hide for him the night before the killing, according to testimony during a hearing in Fayette Circuit Court.
The hearing was held to determine whether police and prosecutors can continue searching the hard drive.
No decision was made, and Judge Pamela Goodwine set a second hearing for Aug. 16.
Nunn, who is being held in the Fayette County jail, waived his right to appear Thursday. He faces the death penalty in the shooting death of his ex-fiancee, Amanda Ross, 29, of Lexington.
Ross was found shot outside her townhouse the morning of Sept. 11, 2009.
A friend of Nunn's, Johnny Hutchison of Glasgow, testified that Nunn had called him the night of Sept. 10 and told him he wanted to drop off packages at Hutchison's house.
Hutchison, who wasn't home at the time, said he told Nunn to put them in his unlocked car.
Nunn said he would pick the items up later, Hutchison testified. Nunn didn't tell him what was in the package or why he wanted Hutchison to store it in his basement, he said.
After learning about Ross' murder, Hutchison testified that he called an attorney to determine what he should do with the box and vase that Nunn had dropped off. Hutchison said he then contacted Barren County Sheriff Chris Eaton, who came to his home to retrieve the items.
Eaton testified that he opened the box at the sheriff's office to make sure there was nothing dangerous in it. After seeing a photo album, external hard drive and loose photographs of naked women, some of whom he recognized, he said he closed the box and contacted Lexington police.
"It was embarrassing," he said.
Betti Neimi, one of Nunn's attorneys, repeatedly asked why Eaton did not obtain a search warrant before opening the box.
He testified that, since he only opened the box to make sure there was nothing dangerous inside, he didn't think he needed one.
Lexington police detective David Hester, who specializes in child pornography investigations, said he identified images of young girls during a computer forensics search of the hard drive.
Lexington police detective Todd Iddings said police and prosecutors stopped searching the hard drive after seeing the images.
Prosecutors filed a motion in April asking for permission to search the hard drive. Attorneys for Nunn argued in their response that police had no legal right to begin the investigation of the hard drive and that Lexington police and Eaton had no right to search the box.
Also during Thursday's hearing, Iddings testified that he found a file in the car Nunn was driving the day of the murder that contained nude and semi-nude photographs of Ross and stationery from his 2003 campaign for governor.
A derogatory phrase was written on the manila folder, he said.
Iddings also said lab results returned in March found gun residue on the steering wheel and gear shaft of the black Honda Nunn was driving the day of the murder.
He said a vehicle resembling the one Nunn was driving is identified in video surveillance footage from an elementary school near Ross's townhouse just a few minutes after someone had called 911 the day of the shooting.
Defense attorneys and prosecutors declined comment after the hearing.
Ross' mother, Diana Ross, also declined to comment. She and several family members and friends attended the hearing.
posted by KYJurisDoctor at 12:45 PM
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