Fayette coroner rules deadly shooting at multi-million dollar Lexington home a suicide
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The death of Ethan Hatfield, the man who died in a fatal shooting inside a multi million-dollar gated home on McAtee Lane in December, has been ruled a suicide, according to investigative documents obtained by the Herald-Leader.
The shooting happened in the evening hours of Dec. 8 in the 4900 block of McAtee Lane. Lt. Daniel Burnett with Lexington police said officers found Hatfield and a 22-year-old woman each suffering from a gunshot wound when they arrived to the scene.
Hatfield was declared dead at the scene while the woman suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Burnett. The woman suffered a gunshot wound to the head, according to documents from the state Medical Examiner’s Office, which were obtained by the Herald-Leader through an open records request.
Initially investigators believed the shooting was a possible attempted murder-suicide, according to the report from the state medical examiner’s office.
The Fayette County Coroner’s Office ultimately ruled Hatfield’s death a suicide, but officials needed to rely on the investigation from the Lexington Police Department to make the determination. Dr. Sarah Maines, who performed Hatfield’s autopsy at the state Medical Examiner’s Office, said the autopsy wasn’t enough to confirm a suicide.
“In conversations with the coroner, the circumstances surrounding the fatal event are described as less certain than originally described,” Maines wrote in the final diagnosis of Hatfield’s death, which was obtained by the Herald-Leader through the Kentucky Open Records Act. “While the cause of this death is without question, the manner of death cannot be determined by autopsy alone.
“Because manner determination is heavily dependent on investigative information, and because investigative conclusions regarding the manner are still unclear, the manner is best classified ‘undetermined’ at this time.”
The Fayette County Coroner’s Office used evidence from further investigation into Hatfield’s death to rule it a suicide, according to the coroner’s report obtained by the Herald-Leader.
According to the Fayette County coroner’s report for Hatfield, police received a call from a woman at the residence saying Hatfield shot her, then shot himself after an argument. His death death certificate was finalized on Friday.
The Lexington Police Department further confirmed that the incident was determined to be a suicide.
Hatfield’s blood alcohol content the night of the shooting was 0.190, over twice the legal limit, according to a toxicology report filed in the death investigation.
While police didn’t give an exact address for the shooting on McAtee Lane, records from the Fayette County Property Valuation Administrator indicated there is only one home on the block: A $3.4 million house that was previously the site of a gruesome 2017 assault on a drug “mule” hired to transport marijuana from Colorado to Kentucky.
The house owner was listed as a limited liability corporation that was led by Rodney B. Hatfield, the Chevrolet dealer and Ethan Hatfield’s father, according to public local and state land and business records.
Ethan Hatfield was one of four men convicted in the case. He was sentenced to prison time but received shock probation.
The victim in the assault was working with the suspects to traffic marijuana, according to court records.
The home has previously been noted as one of the most valuable houses in Lexington.
This story was originally published February 14, 2023 at 7:00 AM.
