Trial has been officially postponed for manslaughter suspect Jaden Johnson, after the new prosecutor requested more time to become informed on the case and work towards a possible resolution.
Former Graves County Commonwealth’s Attorney and now special prosecutor Richie Kemp says he has received the significant amount of evidence in this case, and he will need more time to go through it all—meaning he won’t be ready for the trial that was set to start on May 22. On top of that, one of the main witnesses won’t be available to testify until sometime in September.
Judge John Atkins questioned why a recorded statement from that witness couldn’t be taken, and Kemp says he would prefer they be there in person—but he will look into seeing if they can rearrange their schedule.
Leaving the original trial date of May 22 as a pretrial conference, Judge Atkins agreed to push the trial date back. Public defender Eric Bearden, who represents Johnson, says he’s confident they can come to a resolution in this case through mediation.
Johnson is charged with second-degree manslaughter in connection with a crash on Bill Bryan Boulevard in 2023 that resulted in the death of 34-year-old Adrian Tucker. The Hopkinsville Police Department reported that Johnson had been operating the vehicle at speeds of around 90 miles per hour in a 35 miles per hour speed zone.
Tucker had to be extricated from his vehicle and was pronounced deceased at the scene. Johnson and two others were also injured in the crash.