The white man accused of killing two African-Americans at a Kroger grocery store in Jeffersontown, Kentucky, was ordered to be held on $5 million bond at his arraignment on Thursday.
According to WAVE News, a lawyer for Gregory Bush, a public defender, asked for a bond reduction, but the judge denied that request, ruling Bush a danger to the community.
“I believe you to be a danger,” the judge stressed.
“You are to possess no firearms, to have no contact with any of the alleged victims’ families, and (have) no contact with the place of violation including any Kroger.”
Bush, 51, was charged with two counts of murder and 10 counts of wanton endangerment for the shooting that took place on Wednesday around 3:30pm, killing Maurice Stallard, 69, and Vickie Lee Jones, 67, both from Louisville.
Stallard was the father of the city’s Chief Equity Officer, Kellie Watson. Apparently, he was there shopping with his 12-year-old grandson for art supplies.
https://twitter.com/sahluwal/status/1055482793340239873
The Courier-Journal reported that the arrest citation stated that Bush “pulled a pistol from his waistband and shot [a man] in the rear of the head and again multiple times as he lay on the floor.” Bush then allegedly re-holstered his weapon, walked out of the store, drew his weapon again and allegedly shot and killed Jones in the parking lot, the newspaper noted.
The Kroger Co. issued a statement saying that company officials were “shocked and saddened by the shooting.”
“Thanks to the quick response of the local police department, the suspect was apprehended and our store is secure.”
Authorities have yet to confirm a motive behind Bush’s alleged crimes, but WDRB.com News reported that he has a history of making racist comments in the past, domestic violence and mental illness. Older court documents claim that Bush called his ex-wife a “n***er b*tch” and was charged with domestic abuse.
In a past Facebook post, Bush also wrote “[I’ve] worked most of my life and battled mental illness throughout my life. My paranoid-schizophrenia finally stopped me from working and not am on mental disability. I’m lucky I made it this far with all the trouble I’ve caused myself when I get off my medicine.”
It’s unknown if Bush was off his medication during the time of the shooting.
But what we do know is that a witness to the shooting claims that after taking out his gun to protect himself, Bush allegedly told him, “Don’t shoot me. I won’t shoot you. Whites don’t shoot whites,” the Chicago Tribune wrote.
This is a developing story and we will provide updates as they become available.
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