PULASKI SHERIFF'S KILLER GETS LIFE IN PRISON

SOMERSET - The man who murdered Pulaski County Sheriff Sam Catron
apologized yesterday before going to prison for at least 25 years.

Later, Danny S. Shelley's defense attorney said Shelley was hooked on drugs
and was manipulated into pulling the trigger by two other men, one who was
supplying him painkillers and the other who was running for sheriff against
Catron. Both were charged along with Shelley.

In a short hearing yesterday, Circuit Judge Paul Braden sentenced Shelley,
31, to life in prison without the possibility of parole for at least 25
years. When the judge asked Shelley whether he wanted to say anything, he
offered a brief apology for one of the most stunning crimes in the area's
history.

"I'd like to say," Shelley started, then turned to face Catron's family in
the courtroom, "I'm terribly sorry for what has happened, for what I've done."

Sheriff Todd Wood and Chief Deputy Larry Wesley took Shelley to a state
prison classification center after the hearing, according to Wood's office.

Several friends and family members of the slain sheriff, including his
87-year-old mother, Jennie Rachel, were in the courtroom. They later said
Shelley's apology seemed sincere.

"It's nice to know there's some admittance of guilt, and some sorrow," said
Catron's sister Nancy Catron-Hruneni. "The reality is I'd still rather have
my brother back."

Shelley pleaded guilty last month to avoid the death penalty. He is to
testify against the two men charged with helping plot the crime, Jeff
Morris, 35, and Kenneth White, 55, both of Pulaski County. They could face
the death penalty if convicted.

Shelley was a regular in softball leagues around Pulaski County for years
and was nicknamed "Pup" because he got along with everyone. But by April
2001, he was addicted to prescription pain drugs because of problems with
his knees, and White was supplying his habit, said Mark Stanziano,
Shelley's attorney.

White, who once lived in Perry County, has a history of arrests on drug and
robbery charges. He was also helping Morris in his bid to unseat Catron in
the Republican primary last year as Catron sought a fifth term.

Stanziano said Shelley refused an offer of money to kill Catron, but White
and Morris kept the psychological pressure on him. For instance, Stanziano
said he understood White reported Shelley to the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration, then apparently used his influence with the DEA to cool the
investigation of Shelley.

A number of factors went into Shelley's pulling the trigger, Stanziano
said: his knowledge or suspicion that he faced arrest, his drug problem,
and emotional appeals by White and Morris as they used the twisted logic of
the drug world to try to convince him that a pre-emptive strike against
Catron was the right thing to do.

"If you've got a guy on drugs, it's easier to get him to believe these
kinds of crazy things," Stanziano said. "He was preyed upon by the other two."

White's real goal was "creating a (drug) pipeline into the area," Stanziano
said.

Attorneys for White and Morris could not be reached last night to respond
to Stanziano's comments.

Earlier, however, Corbin attorney David Hoskins, who represents White, said
Shelley has reason to embroider his comments about White in order to make
his information more valuable.

Yesterday, Braden set a Sept. 2 trial date for Morris and White, who have
denied involvement in Catron's murder.

The slain sheriff's brother Lewis Catron said the family signed off on the
plea agreement with Shelley because it would help the case against Morris
and White.

Hoskins said he anticipates filing motions to separate the trial for the
two men. If Braden grants the motion, it could mean only one of the men
would be tried in September.

Morris nearly pleaded guilty last year to avoid the death penalty, but he
backed out at the last minute. Morris and White now maintain their innocence.

Morris was once a deputy under Catron before being forced out in 2001 over
a disciplinary problem.

Police officers and prosecutors suspect drugs and politics motivated
scheming by the three to eliminate Catron, a popular incumbent: Morris so
he could be sheriff, and White so he would have a friend in the office.

For his part, Shelley said he had been promised a job if Morris won,
Kentucky State Police Detective Todd Dalton has said.

Stanziano said it's doubtful Shelley would have gotten a deputy's job. He
said there was some talk that Shelley might be in charge of the evidence
room, which would have given him access to destroy evidence if necessary.

Shelley, who had received training in the Marine Corps, hid on a wooded
hillside and killed Catron with a single rifle shot to the head from about
80 yards last April 13 as the 48-year-old sheriff left a rural fire
department fish fry where he had been campaigning.

Spectators saw a man speed away on a motorcycle. Police found Shelley and
his rifle within minutes after he wrecked the bike, which was registered to
Morris, a few miles from the shooting.

Stanziano said that since Shelley has gotten off drugs, he can't believe he
did something to cause so much pain to the Catron family and his own.

However, Shelley is in good sprits even though he faces at least 25 years
in prison, Stanziano said. "What he said to me today was, 'I've almost got
one down."'