Kentucky dentist, son arrested after woman found murdered at his home as her family sues police over killing
A Kentucky dentist and his son face criminal charges after an employee at their family restaurant was found stabbed to death in the older man's home.
Now, the woman's family is searching for answers.
Amber Spradlin, 39, was found dead with multiple stab wounds to the head and neck on June 18, 2023 on a couch in the Prestonsburg home of dentist Michael McKinney II, 56.
McKinney II and another man, 23-year-old Josh Mullins, have both pleaded not guilty to charges of tampering with evidence at the scene of her death. The Kentucky dentist was released after posting $250,000 bail, court records show.
The dentist's son, 24-year-old Michael McKinney III, was also arrested on July 30 and indicted on charges of murder along with multiple counts of evidence tampering. He is being held in lieu of $5 million bail, according to court records.
All three men were charged with an additional count of evidence tampering on Aug. 14, according to court documents.
Lawyers for the McKinneys could not immediately be reached for comment.
Prosecutors allege that after Spradlin was killed, the McKinneys and Mullins destroyed bloody clothing, the handle of a knife used in the slaying and a security camera that would have captured the woman's murder.
The indictment also accuses the three men of planting a knife in the couch where Spradlin was fatally stabbed to "suggest it was the murder weapon."
Meanwhile, Spradlin's family has filed a civil lawsuit against the county, city of Prestonsburg, its police department, McKinney and his son, Mullins, the Seasons Inn Motel and Restaurant and a slew of others.
The lawsuit accuses law enforcement of negligence and obstruction of justice and alleges that Spradlin's death could have been prevented if a welfare check was made after two calls were made to emergency services. It also accuses the Prestonsburg Police Department of inadequately training its 911 dispatchers and alleges that Spradlin's murder was not reported "until after efforts were made to cover up the crime."
The circumstances surrounding Spradlin's death are still unclear, and authorities have yet to release a possible motive, NBC News reported.
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In the weeks before her death, Spradlin's cousin told NBC the woman had started working as a hostess at a restaurant owned by the McKinney family. The last time Debbie Hall spoke to her cousin, she told the outlet, was the day before her death.
She had texted Spradlin at 11:30 p.m. on June 17, asking whether the restaurant hostess had gotten off work and gotten home safely. Spradlin replied that she was still working, and Hall told her to "be careful going home," NBC reported.
According to the family's lawsuit, Spradlin accompanied the McKinney father and son from another restaurant to the elder McKinney's home after her shift. The younger McKinney had allegedly been drinking heavily with another man accused in the wrongful death suit who does not face any criminal charges.
A 911 call was placed from the dentist's residence between 5 and 5:30 the next morning, Floyd County Judge-Executive Robbie Williams told NBC News.
During the call, a person believed to be McKinney III sought help for an emergency – but another person got onto the line and said that no emergency response was necessary, Williams told the outlet.
According to the family's lawsuit, the caller wanted help removing an unidentified drunk man from the house – when a dispatcher said that authorities could only do that if the person was having a medical emergency or a threat to themselves or others, the caller said the person had a cut from falling.
Prestonsburg's current police chief, Ross Shurtleff, told NBC that another man got onto the phone, saying "he's got a small cut – everything is fine here."
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In a second call, according to the lawsuit, the younger McKinney called former Prestonsburg Police Chief Randy Woods later that morning. The lawsuit alleges that this was done to obfuscate a potential investigation, with attorneys writing that Spradlin may have survived if the former chief had taken "prompt remedial action."
Roughly five hours after the first 911 call, and after he called the former chief, McKinney II dialed 911 again, according to the lawsuit and confirmed to NBC by Williams. At that point, law enforcement finally arrived to find Spradlin dead.
After two years with the department, Woods resigned days after Spradlin's killing – but in a statement published by WYMT-TV, he attributed the decision to a shooting unrelated to Spradlin's death in which three law enforcement officers died.
Fox News Digital could not reach Woods or the Prestonsburg Police Department for comment.
Spradlin's family is still outspoken about the killing more than a year later. A Facebook group they've launched to raise the profile of Spradlin's case has tens of thousands of followers, and they have placed several billboards around the 4,000-strong town of Prestonsburg with the slain woman's face that simply read "Justice for Amber."