The man accused of shooting and killing a Kentucky State Police trooper was back in court Tuesday in Bowling Green.
This is the second time Emonnie Branch has appeared in court after he was indicted for the murder of Trooper Hayden Phillips.
A criminal complaint says Phillips stopped a vehicle with an expired temporary tag on Interstate 65 on September 28 before he was fatally shot. Phillips’ in-car video shows him being fatally shot while he was leaning into the window of a vehicle and talking with Branch.
Phillips was assigned to Kentucky State Police Post 3 in Bowling Green.
Branch’s attorneys reiterated his not guilty plea Tuesday in circuit court and filed a motion for all evidence to be preserved. The entire hearing lasted six minutes.
Branch was indicted on charges of murder of a first responder, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and tampering with physical evidence.
Murder of a first responder is a capital offense in Kentucky and carries a penalty of up to life in prison without the possibility of probation or parole, or death.
The other charges carry potential penalties of five to 10 years and one to five years, respectively.
Branch’s next hearing is scheduled for February 12, 2027.
Source: WDRB+WAVE
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