Man charged with killing a Kentucky deputy should face death penalty, prosecutors say
The state Attorney General’s Office wants a man accused of killing a Scott County deputy to face the death penalty, according to a court document filed Wednesday.
Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s office filed a “notice of aggravating circumstances” against Steven Sheangshang, 45, indicating they want Sheangshang to be eligible for the death penalty if he’s convicted of murdering sheriff’s deputy Caleb Conley. Sheangshang is accused of killing Conley during a traffic stop in May, according to court records. He was indicted in July.
The filing says Sheangshang should be eligible for the death penalty because murdering a law enforcement officer is an aggravating circumstance under state law. While the court record doesn’t indicate that prosecutors will outright ask jurors to sentence Sheangshang to death, it does say prosecutors will ask for the death penalty to be an option at sentencing.
The Attorney General’s Office does not prosecute most criminal cases in state court, but an attorney from the office was appointed as a special prosecutor in this case, court records show. Rewa Zakharia, director of the office of special prosecutions for the attorney general, is prosecuting Sheangshang.
Sheangshang faces several different court cases across multiple counties. He’s charged with murder, robbery, wanton endangerment, possessing a gun as a felon and being a persistent felony offender in Scott County. He’s also charged with assault, fraud, robbery, burglary, theft, evidence tampering, possessing a gun as a convicted felon and being a persistent felony offender in Fayette County, records show.
He faces fraud and theft charges in Woodford County, and he’s been charged with burglary and being a persistent felony offender in Kenton County, records show.
Sheangshang was being held at the Bourbon County Detention Center Friday, according to jail records.
