(LEX 18) — Kentucky State Police and the FBI are investigating threats made against Kentucky Parole Board members following the early release of Ronald Exantus, who killed a 6-year-old boy in 2015.
Governor Andy Beshear said the threats stem from misinformation about the case and emphasized that the parole board did not choose to release Exantus from prison early.
"The parole board never made a decision to release Ronald Exantus. Instead, every time it came in front of them, they voted against him and to keep him in prison," Beshear said.
The governor explained that Exantus was released because of a state law, not a parole board decision. The board unanimously recommended on September 30 that Exantus should stay in prison.
Exantus admitted to killing 6-year-old Logan Tipton with a butcher knife after entering the family's unlocked home in Versailles in December 2015. However, he was found not guilty of the child's murder by reason of insanity.
Exantus was convicted on three charges for stabbing other members of the boy's family. Those assault charges allowed him to be classified as a non-violent offender, making him legally eligible to earn time off his sentence through good behavior and other activities.
"A state statute passed by a previous General Assembly required his release at the date it was in line for the crimes he was convicted of," Beshear said.
The early release has drawn criticism from the Trump White House and conservative influencers, according to Beshear. He said the spread of misinformation led to the threats now under investigation.
"You should hear some of these threats that are being made. They are awful. They are awful. They're not just threatening the parole board members, they're threatening their families," Beshear said.
"And some people who are making these threats are only doing it because they saw this information from the White House," he added.
State Police says they will be going after people making threats.
"Threats in today's environment sometimes become a reality, so we take every threat - anything we need to look into - very seriously," said Sgt. Matt Sudduth.
One state lawmaker plans to propose legislation that could prevent similar situations in the future. The bill would send someone found not guilty by reason of insanity to a mental health facility.
Beshear said he wants to learn more about the proposed legislation.
"I'm certainly open to different pieces of legislation that would hopefully prevent this from happening in the future," Beshear said.
