The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that District Judge Henria Bailey-Lewis acquitted the juvenile at her trial on Monday:

The girl’s name has not been released because she was 17 in April, when the alleged crime occurred. Her trial was closed, but her attorney, Sharon K. Allen Gay, said she received permission to release information about the verdict.

The teen and two 18-year-old friends, Corinne Schwab and Ashley Sams, were charged in April with attempted murder and kidnapping in a case involving Cheyenne Williams. The trial for Schwab and Sams, is scheduled for Thursday.

Jordan Palmer, founder of the Kentucky Equality Federation, was not available for comment on Monday’s verdict. Palmer has served as spokesman for Williams and her family. The federation is a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex advocacy organization.

In addition, no one returned a phone message left at Williams’ home.

The lack of official court room procedure, as well as inadequate prosecution in this case continue to unfold.  London based Kentucky Equality Federation Treasurer Dean Byrd stated it was his belief that if the case had taken place in a urban court such as Lexington, Richmond, or Louisville the outcome would have been different.

The grandmother of the alleged victim today added: “The judge mentioned lack of evidence; maybe it was because the judge slept through the evidence.”

According to the mother of the alleged the victim, the County Attorney told her that he made no statements to the Lexington Herald-Leader in the article mentioned above.  The mother also stated that one of the police officers also pointed out to her that District Judge Henria Bailey-Lewis was “nodding off,” during the trial.

Former Kentucky Equality Federation president Jordan Palmer, who was not available at press time issued the following statement:

“After the irregularities our attorney, Jill Hall Rose pointed out during the preliminary hearing (http://www.kentuckylgbt.org/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/1300881/pid/1235127), this was no surprise to us; this is why we have always maintained that we reserve the right to sue the accused in civil court.

The family has give Kentucky Equality Federation the green light to begin getting information for a civil case.

I drilled Ms. Williams with Statehouse candidate Matthew Vanderpool during the last hearing and both of us were satisfied that she was being truthful. Mr. Vanderpool, an openly gay candidate for the Kentucky House of Representatives also offered his support to the family and wanted to shed light on hate crimes across the Commonwealth regardless of race, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

It would not be the first time in the history of the Kentucky Court of Justice or the United States that a person was found criminally innocent and later found guilty in civil court.

This case and its information have also been forwarded to the FBI.

The family will make absolutely no statements. Chairman Jones, the Discrimination, Hate Crimes and School Bullying Committee, and myself personally are their sole spokesperson.

As a community, we remain united with Ms. Williams.

Funding a civil trial is currently on the agenda for the Board of Directors meeting on Friday, August, 20, 2010.”

This is similar to the statement Kentucky Equality Federation made in April.

Southern Kentucky Political Futures Bought or Dependent on Keeping Larger Families Happy

In March, a jury convicted eight people, including former Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle, 66, and former school Superintendent Douglas C. Adams, 58, on a charge that they engaged in organized criminal acts to rig elections.

Those charged with the former Circuit Judge for Judicial District 41, which includes Clay, Leslie, and Jackson Counties also included Clay County Clerk Freddy W. Thompson, Magistrate Stanley Bowling, 59; Charles Wayne Jones, 69, a former county Democratic election commissioner; William Stivers, 57, a former precinct worker; and William Bart Morris, 51, who owns a garbage-transfer company, and his wife Debra L. Morris, 50, who owns a beauty shop.

Many of the people listed by U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves have not been charged, and his finding doesn’t mean they will be, but it punctuates the extent of alleged public corruption.

Those Reeves said were also involved (other than the ones convicted) include Circuit Judge Oscar Gayle House; Judge-Executive Carl “Crawdad” Sizemore; Commonwealth’s Attorney Gary Gregory (who covers Clay, Leslie and Jackson Counties); former Representative Barbara Colter and current Representative Tim Couch, former Jailer Charles Marcum, former Sheriff Edd Jordan, who is running for re-election, Manchester attorneys Yancey White and Carl Anthony Short; and Roy Morgan, a former magistrate influential in politics. (more from the Lexington Herald-Leader)

During the May 2010 election primary, the Kentucky Office of Attorney General received complaints of vote buying or selling in 11 Southern Kentucky Counties: Breathitt (11 calls), Clay (seven), Jackson (two), Knox (one), Laurel (one), Leslie (three), Magoffin (three), Monroe (one), Perry (four), Powell (one) and Wayne (one).

Prolonged Public Corruption in the 41st Judicial Circuit

* time-line courtest of the Lexington Herald-Leader

Oct. 25, 2005: Jennings B. White, who served two terms as county clerk, admits laundering money for a large-scale drug trafficker. He said he got involved with the man while in office. He is sentenced to 90 months in prison, fined $25,000 and forfeits $650,000 to the government.

Feb. 5, 2007: Vernon Hacker, a former Manchester council member and director of the local 911 system, pleads guilty to being involved in drug trafficking. A drug dealer said Hacker tipped him off about police activity. He is sentenced to 120 months in prison.

April 27, 2007: D. Kennon White, whose father, Manchester Mayor Daugh White, created a job for him as city manager in 2004, pleads guilty to extorting kickbacks from a contractor and involvement in paving private driveways with taxpayers’ money for political gain. The charges remain sealed for months as he helped federal investigators. He has not been sentenced.

Aug. 13, 2007: Daugh White, who served 28 years as Manchester mayor before losing in 2006, pleads guilty to extortion and paving private drives. He is sentenced to 84 months and a $100,000 fine.

Aug. 15, 2007: Darnell Hipsher, former Manchester city council member, pleads guilty to taking part in the scheme to pave private drives. He is sentenced to 46 months.

Aug. 17, 2007: Todd Roberts, a former assistant police chief in Manchester, pleads guilty to involvement in having a drug dealer burn down a vacant house so the city could buy the property for construction of a new police and 911 building. He is sentenced to 87 months in prison, a $15,000 fine and restitution of $25,000.

Nov. 20, 2007: Magistrate Fred Clinton Johnson pleads guilty to buying votes in the May 2002 primary. He is sentenced to 14 months in prison and fined $10,000.

March 17, 2008: Charles “Dobber” Weaver, Manchester fire chief, pleads guilty to stealing votes in 2006 when he was a precinct officer. The scam involved duping voters into walking away from new, unfamiliar voting machines before completing their choices, then switching the votes. He has not been sentenced.

March 19, 2009: Authorities arrest eight people on vote-fraud charges in the latest phase of the continuing investigation, including longtime Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle, school Superintendent Douglas C. Adams and county Clerk Freddy W. Thompson. Magistrate Stanley Bowling is charged later.

May 29, 2009: Paul Bishop, a former precinct worker charged in the case, pleads guilty to buying votes. He has not been sentenced.